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| Burlesque Feast, Jan Mandijn, Museo Bilbao |
When I saw this painting I was reminded of Bruegel's peasant wedding (it appears on one of my earlier blogs). Mandijn's was painted in Antwerp in c. 1550. Bruegel's painting in 1567. Both are said to have been inspired by Bosch. Perhaps it's not too much of a stretch of the imagination to think their paths crossed.
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| from Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna |
The description on the Jan Mandijn on the Museo Bilbao site says that: Mandijn sought inspiration in Bosch's painting to give free rein to his fantasy, acquiring a reputation as a "maker of mischievous and outrageous scenes".
There
are many similarities. I'm assuming it's a wedding scene because there
is a woman sitting before a drape wearing a crown and a garland
over her head. I remarked previously how unhappy the bride looks in
Bruegel's painting - Mandijn's bride is down right miserable. And I'm
going to guess that the woman on her right is her mother -
well... she's just as unhappy. 
And
the Bride's fingers - what is this suggesting? The Bride's headwear is
of interest - a crown of wooden spoons (apparently the symbol of
gluttony) and eggshells (symbol of crassitude and lechery).
The
wedding guests are all seated on one side of the table, there is a red
drape behind the bride and she wears a crown of laurel - all typical
elements of a Flemish peasant weddings of the 16th and 17th centuries.
The rattle hanging from the crown of laurel is a reference to
foolishness. Who is the husband? Well, I'm going to hazard a guess that
it's the man at the end of the table on the left - the one smiling at
the serving girl - who in turn is looking to the bride. In the background a servant girl is making up the marital bed. Is this the cause of the bride's unhappiness?As for the owl that has intrigued this couple so? I can find no direct meaning in regards to this painting, but the owl is associated with wisdom, mystery, secrets, transition... so perhaps this woman knows something the bride doesn't?
