WHEN ART FOR THE MARKET WAS BORN

Saints, Sinners, Lovers & Fools: Three Hundred Years of Flemish Masterworks at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts

Commentary by Sergio Martinez

The Garden of Eden with the Four Elements 
(Hendrick de Clerck, and Denijs van Asloot, 1613)

Until October 20, 2024, you can visit this interesting exhibition mounted by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts with the support of the Phoebus Foundation of Belgium. The show covers the period from the 15th to the 18th century, with works by celebrated creators such as Hans Memling, Peter Paul Rubens, Anthony van Dyck, Jacob Jordaens and Michaelina Wautier, among others. Many of these works were created or unveiled in Antwerp, then one of the world's leading commercial and cultural centres.

The region of Flanders itself was then an important centre of commercial activity and the focus of political tensions and rivalries between the powers of the time: the Dutch, the Spanish and the French dominated or disputed the territory at different times in history. These confrontations also left an echo in religious and political matters and, of course, also impacted artistic creation.

A Pantry with Game (Frans Anyders, 1640) 

Book illustrations

However, the central fact that substantially changed the way art was made and why Antwerp and Flanders are so important, is that it was there that art began to be made for the market. During the Middle Ages works of art had been commissioned: the Church was in this sense the main entity that commissioned works to the creators of the time, the others who commissioned works were the kings and members of the nobility, who generally commissioned portraits. The artists of Flanders, on the other hand, began to create works that were to be sold in a market now open to the new fortunes that had arisen mainly from the trade of goods that began to come from the American continent to Europe from the 16th century onwards. The creation of an art market resulted in greater creative freedom for artists, although over the centuries this commercial approach would also have its downsides.

A sculpture of
that period

In terms of the aesthetics of this art, the emphasis on the human character of the subjects should be highlighted. Even in the works that present biblical or divine characters, this new way of looking at them by the artists of this period is notable.

A sarcastic look
at life 

The exhibition is divided into seven sections featuring some 150 works, including monumental paintings, sculptures, books, silver works and maps. These sections include works of a religious nature, portraits of famous figures of the time, works with a satirical tone and also some engravings and drawings that show the curiosity aroused in Europe by America, the new continent which, on the other hand, thanks to the flourishing trade, generated the fortunes of many of those who could now acquire the paintings of the famous artists of the time.

The New World arises
great curiosity

Vice, vertu, désir, folie: trois siécles de chef-d'œuvre flamands / Saints, Sinners, Lovers & Fools: Three Hundred Years of Flemish Masterworks is presented at the Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion, Level 2, Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, main entrance through the Jean Noël Desmarais Pavilion, 1380 Sherbrooke West. Admission: $24 (ages 31 and over), $16 (ages 21 to 30), Free for children under 20. Tickets can be purchased online at mbam.qc.ca.