UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI Date:___________________ I, _________________________________________________________, hereby submit this work as part of the requirements for the degree of: in: It is entitled: This work and its defense approved by: Chair: _______________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________ REFLECTIONS OF IDENTITY: THE DEVELOPMENT OF A NATIONALISTIC ATTITUDE IN SIXTEENTH-CENTURY NETHERLANDISH ART A thesis submitted to the Division of Research and Advanced Studies of the University of Cincinnati in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS in the Department of Art History of the School of Art of the College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning 2004 by Anastasia Christine Nurre B.A., University of Cincinnati, 2001 Committee Chair: Kristi A. Nelson, Ph.D. ABSTRACT “Reflections of Identity: The Development of a Nationalistic Attitude in Sixteenth Century Netherlandish Art” by Anastasia C. Nurre The sixteenth century was a time of great change for Western Europe politically, religiously and artistically. Traditional Catholic affiliations, as inherited from the Middle Ages, had been on a decline, and the political sovereignty of individual nations began to take precedence. In the Netherlands, the impact of political and religious advancement was particularly apparent. Catholic Spanish rule attempted to impose an absolute monarchy, despite the demand of local Netherlandish authorities for political and religious freedom. As a result, the seventeen provinces of the Netherlands presented a united front in opposition to Spanish control. The artists of the community, at this time working largely for the market or middle classes, were great reflectors of the cultural shift toward an independent state. The trend towards a nationalistic attitude in the Netherlands began with the split from the religious iconography established and propagated during the Middle Ages. As the influence of the Catholic Church declined, a more secular artwork began to emerge. While this trend is reflective of new ideologies towards the inclusion of religious imagery in artwork, it is also indicative of the growth of an ethnic nationality. Over the course of the sixteenth century, the artistic genres of landscape, secular portraiture and still life gradually evolved to full form, reflecting the tastes of Netherlandish buyers and patrons. This thesis seeks to place artistic developments of the sixteenth century within the context of the growing ethnic identity of the Netherlandish people. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Number List of Illustrations ii Chapter 1: 1 Early Modern Europe and the Netherlands Chapter 2: 20 Portraiture Chapter 3: 28 Landscape Chapter 4: 36 Still Life Conclusion 47 Bibliography 53 Illustrations 60 i LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 1. Hugo van der Goes, Portinari Altarpiece, 1476-79. 2. Robert Campin, Merode Altarpiece, 1427. 3. Jan van Eyck, Rolin Madonna, 1435. 4. Anonymous, Alva’s Throne, 1569. 5. Jan van Eyck, Arnolfini Portrait, 1434. 6. Rogier van der Weyden, Portrait of Francesco d’Este, 1460. 7. Quinten Metsys (Massys), Portrait of Erasmus of Rotterdam, 1517. 8. Maerten van Heemskerck, Family Portrait, 1530. 9. Antonis van Dashorst Mor, Self- Portrait, 1558. 10. Jan van Eyck, Man in a Red Turban, 1433. 11. Joachim Patinir, Landscape with the Flight into Egypt, 1515. 12. Pieter Bruegel [the elder], Gloomy Day from The Seasons, 1565. 13. Maerten van Heemskerck, God’s Command to the Three Estates, from Three Estate Series, unknown date. 14. Maerten van Heemskerck, The Duties of the Peasant, from Three Estates Series, unknown date. 15. Hans Bol, Winter Landscape with Skaters, 1584/86. 16. Jan Provost, Flowers in a Niche, recto Virgin at the Fountain, 1510. 17. Pieter Aertsen, Butcher’s Stall, 1551. 18. Joachim Beuckelaer, The Vegetable Market, 1567. 19. Roelandt Savery, Flowers in a Niche, 1600. ii CHAPTER 1: EARLY MODERN EUROPE AND THE NETHERLANDS For Western Europe, the sixteenth century was a time of change in religious, civic and artistic institutions. The Catholic Church, the historically dominant cultural and political authority, was suffering a decline in prominence. The concept of political sovereignty over a centralized Europe was being developed by contemporary writers and propagated by monarchs demanding absolute rule. Throughout the European communities, the foundations of modern national identities were developing, especially in the historically strong centers such as France, Germany, Spain, Italy and England. In these communities, middle class bankers and merchants had achieved an elevated economic status and, by extension, were able to exert more influence on local politics. Artists of the era, for the first time since the fall of Rome, were in the process of gaining an elevated social status, and with an open market they were able to produce artworks that appealed to and were affordable by middle class citizens. The combination of these changes was especially evident in the Low Countries, affording Netherlandish artists the unique role of social commentators on the shift towards a developing national identity. As in other contemporary European centers, bankers and merchants in the Netherlands had attained a relatively higher social status in conjunction with the beginnings of an open market for trade. With their newly elevated role, the bourgeoisie were able to exert more political influence, especially in their respective localities. Netherlandish artists of the era were in an optimal position to act as witnesses to historical changes and to record the social shift from an identity based upon the religious unity of Europe, toward one that responded to the average citizen of the Netherlands. The open market aided this development, allowing artists the opportunity to create works of art that appealed to the bourgeois citizen, rather than nobility or clergy who had dominated previous centuries politically and economically. The combination of 1 these events, along with Protestant theology, which avoided the use of religious imagery, created a trend in subject matter toward more secular themes, as opposed to religiously based works. As the revolutionary theology was assimilated and diffused throughout the Netherlands, a unique Netherlandish identity began to form and be illustrated in secularly thematic artwork. The course of these changes can be seen in the development of subjects more reflective of the Netherlandish culture and social identity; specifically, the first conceptions of the artistic genres of landscape, secular portraiture and still life. In order to better understand sixteenth-century artistic achievements, a brief history of the rise of a Netherlandish culture must be considered. Role of the Church as the Dominant Cultural Identity in the Middle Ages With the Edict of Milan (313 AD), issued by the Roman Emperor Constantine (306-337 AD), Christianity became an officially recognized religion in the Roman Empire. As the Empire declined, Christianity held an increasingly important role as a defining element of the European community. Starting in the fifth and sixth centuries, Catholic monasteries acted as conduits for the spread of Christianity throughout the majority of Western Europe. As the last bastions of civilization in the Dark Ages of Europe, many of the monasteries became centers of learning and political control in the local community. Unified under the rule of the Pope in Rome, the monasteries promoted and defended a singular Catholic identity. By the eleventh century the influence of the Church had spread to the edges of the Carolingian Empire, creating cultural unity in the majority of Western Europe.1 The first centuries of church dominance were intricately tied to the rule of the Holy Roman Emperor, as derived from the Roman model. While this system did not survive in its 1 Christopher Dawson, The Making of Europe: An Introduction to the History of European Unity (Washington, DC: The Catholic University of America Press, 1954). 2 original form beyond the rule of Charlemagne (742-814), the relationship between the monarchy and the ruling class continued. Despite these close ties, the Catholic Church was able to remain the primary influence on Western Europe for the bulk of the Middle Ages. The pinnacle of church domination can be seen in the power struggle between Emperor Henry IV of Germany and Pope Gregory VII in 1077. Henry had gone against the wishes of the Pope and was excommunicated, along with all of his subjects, from the Catholic Church. Henry’s empire responded with revolt and a power struggle among leading nobles for the emperor’s title. To maintain his standing as emperor, Henry was required to wait for three days, from January 25 to 28, 1077, outside a castle at Canossa where the Pope was staying. There the Emperor begged for forgiveness, while kneeling in the snow as a sign of repentance.2 Ultimately, the Pope accepted Henry back into the fold of the Catholic Church, but not before teaching a valuable lesson about the power and influence of the Church in legitimizing the power of the ruler. The ruling class was not the only medieval group that was defined by its relationship with the Catholic Church. The whole of Europe was overtaken in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries by pilgrimages and crusades, in an effort to enhance individual piety and the prominence of the Church as a whole. Most Western Europeans would have identified themselves as a Catholic, or as a derivative thereof, or at least acted as a Catholic in public in order to conform to the expectations of society.3 Like many other social trends, the extreme influence the church had over society can be seen in the artwork produced during the Medieval period. Throughout the Middle Ages, the church was a primary source of commissions. Indeed, the most abundant art 2 H.E.J. Cowdrey, Pope Gregory VII: 1073-1085 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1998), 156. 3 I use the term “derivative” as an acknowledgement of those sub-sects that were seeking reform in the Catholic Church. While these groups are prominent, the majority was only seeking to reform problematic elements of Church policy.