Het Noordbrabants Museum presents Brueghel: The Family Reunion

The works in Brueghel: The Family Reunion come from renowned collections throughout Europe and North America. Among the highlights are: The Magpie on the Gallows (1568) by Pieter Bruegel the Elder from the Hessisches Landesmuseum in Darmstadt, The Beggars (1568) by Pieter Bruegel the Elder from Musée du Louvre in Paris, Vase of Flowers with Jewel, Coins, and Shells (1606) by Jan Brueghel the Elder from the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana in Milan, Allegory on Painting, (circa 1625 - 1630) by Jan Brueghel the Younger, from the JK Art Foundation, The Netherlands, and The Drunkard Pushed into the Pigsty (1557) by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, from a private collection in New York.

The exhibition and the accompanying catalogue look anew at the Brueghel family and the period and context in which they worked. Who were the powerful women in this family and what was their role in its fame and success? Among others, we meet Mayken Verhulst, the behind-the-scenes matriarch. One of the most famous artists of her day, she was also an astute businesswoman, teacher, mentor, mother-in-law, and grandmother to the first and second generation of Brueghel artists. We are also introduced to Anna Maria Janssens and Clara Eugenia Brueghel, whose art and matronage networks connected several of the most powerful artistic families in Antwerp. Additionally, new insights are presented about the impact of global trade and colonialism on the family business.