Art  /  Exhibition  /  Otherworldly Journeys – The Fantastical Worlds of Bosch and Bruegel

Otherworldly Journeys - The Fantastical Worlds of Bosch and Bruegel

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Pieter van der Heyden, (Netherlandish, about 1530 – about 1572)
After Pieter Brueghel the Elder, (Netherlandish, about 1526/27 – 1569)
Pride, 1558
Engraving
8 7/8 in. x 11 5/8 in.
Collection Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam
From the estate of Dr J.C.J. Bierens de Haan BdH 1081 (PK)
Photo: Studio Buitenhof

Pieter van der Heyden, (Netherlandish, about 1530 – about 1572)
After Pieter Brueghel the Elder, (Netherlandish, about 1526/27 – 1569)
Summer, 1570
Engraving, from the series The Four Seasons
8 7/8 in. x 11 6/16 in.
Collection Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam
From the estate of Dr J.C.J. Bierens de Haan BdH 1081 (PK)
Photo: Studio Buitenhof

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OCTOBER 17, 2025 – FEBRUARY 1, 2026

The art of Bosch and Bruegel is full of imagination and fantasy. At a time when other artists adhered to tradition, Hieronymus Bosch and Pieter Bruegel were constantly developing novel subject matter and inventing new imagery. Satire and mockery alternated with extraordinary visions of heaven and hell, whether portraying boisterous peasants or saints being tormented by malevolent beasts.

Bosch was not a graphic artist himself, but his fantastic images of monsters and demons quickly found their way into prints. Fifty years after his death, there was a resurgence of interest in Bosch’s work. With most of his paintings in private collections, industrious publishers met the enthusiastic demand for Boschian imagery by commissioning printmakers to design artworks inspired by Bosch, often populated with whole armies of monsters, devils, and strange creatures. Peter Bruegel matched his predecessor’s imagination, and early in his career, he imitated Bosch’s style and subject matter so well that he became known as the Second Bosch. Bruegel was equally inventive, however, and soon grew beyond mere imitator of Bosch to distinguish himself as a leading artist of landscapes and innovative genre subjects.

Featuring nearly 90 original engravings and etchings, Otherworldly Journeys: The Fantastical Worlds of Bosch and Bruegel celebrates the inspired pictorial world of Bosch and Bruegel in all its facets. The exhibition is organized and generously loaned by the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, and locally curated by Kim Spence, curator of works on paper.

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This exhibition is supported by Dutch Culture USA, a program of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the United States.

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Leading Sponsors

Mary Helen and John David Myles

2026 Exhibition Season Sponsors

Cary Brown and Steven E. Epstein
Susan Dabney Lavin and Allan Lavin
Todd P. Lowe and Fran C. Ratterman
Debra and Ronald Murphy
Dr. Victoria Phillips and Travis Anderson
Sociable Weaver Foundation

Additional Support 

Boxhill Associates
Dr. Jeffrey and Mrs. Susan Callen
Ruth H. Cloudman
Linda M. Dabney
Spencer E. Harper III
Paula and Frank Harshaw
Alan and Shelly Ann Kamei
Sally and Stanley Macdonald
Lois S. Louis and David B. Ratterman
Carolyn and Don Snow
Mr. and Mrs. James R. Voyles
Martha and Kenneth Wertz
Holly and Joseph Gathright

IN THE PRESS

Otherworldly Journeys: The Fantastical Worlds of Bosch and Bruegel, MutualArt.com, October 17, 2025 

Speed Art Museum brings Bosch and Bruegel’s fantastical print worlds to the U.S. for the first time, Art Daily.com, December 22, 2025

RELATED PROGRAMMING

Otherworldly Journeys – The Fantastical Worlds of Bosch and Bruegel Drop-in Tour
Every Saturday from 12 to 1 pm and Sunday from 2 to 3 pm

Explore the new special exhibition, Otherworldly Journeys – The Fantastical Worlds of Bosch and Bruegel, and engage in conversations during this one-hour Docent-guided tour focused on this exhibition. Free with admission to this exhibition.

Speed Chat Spot – Otherworldly Journeys: The Fantastical Worlds of Bosch and Bruegel
Every Friday and Saturday from 2 pm to 3 pm

Check out Speed Chat Spots. During this time frame a friendly docent will be available to chat about our collection or current exhibition. Free with admission to this exhibition.

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