The time of Pieter Bruegel the Elder Ä. (around 1526/30-1569) was characterized by strong religious and political conflicts. The years of his life included sectarian wars, the cruel rule of the Duke of Alba as governor of the Spanish Netherlands and the horrors of the Inquisition. To this day, the life and work of the Flemish artist remain puzzling. While early scholarship emphasized the popular character of Bruegel's work, more recent studies place greater importance on the humanistic content.

His painting originally goes back to his work for the publisher Hieronymus Cock. Bruegel designed numerous original series of graphic images that were successfully distributed throughout Europe. Depictions of virtues and vices were accompanied by lively farm festivals and impressive landscape panoramas. He then concentrated more and more on painting and created works primarily for the cultural elite of Antwerp and Brussels.

Bruegel was an artist who courageously dealt with his time and used his own approaches to create new images and solutions. Instead of romanticizing reality, he addressed the cruelty of the religious wars and was also critical of the church. Bruegel cleverly concealed his political and religious views behind an allusive imagery that to this day encourages the viewer to discover subtle messages hidden behind the seemingly harmless everyday scenes.

Based on TASCHEN's XXL monograph, a comprehensive overview of Bruegel's entire oeuvre, this compact volume, published to mark the publisher's 40th anniversary, contains all 40 paintings by the exceptional artist. High-quality reproductions including selected detailed photographs and knowledgeable texts make it clear how Bruegel captured the theater of life in a witty and timeless way, and reveal his larger-than-life universe with unprecedented clarity.