Frans Floris de Vriendt, Pomona, 1565, Hallwylska museet/SHM (PDM)

‘Beauty and Ugliness in the Renaissance’

20 Feb. →
14 June'26

The Ideal, the Real and the Grotesque

Beauty and Ugliness are themes that resonate and fascinate in every era – universal concepts, yet their forms and tastes can culturally vary over time. How did the Renaissance thinkers conceive of these ideas? Art, through the power of the image, is the best way to discover them.

The exhibition’s approach is unprecedented: it traces how the standards of Beauty and Ugliness evolved from the last quarter of the 15th century to the end of the 16th century—key transitional periods—by juxtaposing in a rich and compelling confrontation the ways in which these two subjects were interpreted by the greatest Italian artists and their counterparts from Northern Europe.

We also discover that Beauty became an increasingly important social topic during this time, as evidenced by the growing number of publications throughout the 16th century offering “recipes for looking beautiful,” dedicated to cosmetics and beauty care. At the same time, Ugliness, during the same period (but especially throughout the 16th century), gained more prominence in numerous and varied forms.

 

Practical information

Dates

Friday 20 February, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 21 February, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 22 February, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 24 February, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 25 February, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 26 February, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 27 February, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 28 February, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 1 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 3 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 4 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 5 March, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 6 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 7 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 8 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 10 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 11 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 12 March, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 13 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 14 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 15 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 17 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 18 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 19 March, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 20 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 21 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 22 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 24 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 25 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 26 March, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 27 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 28 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 29 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 31 March, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 1 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 2 April, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 3 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 4 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 5 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 7 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 8 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 9 April, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 10 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 11 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 12 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 14 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 15 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 16 April, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 17 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 18 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 19 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 21 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 22 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 23 April, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 24 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 25 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 26 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 28 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 29 April, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 30 April, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 1 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 2 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 3 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 5 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 6 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 7 May, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 8 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 9 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 10 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 12 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 13 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 14 May, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 15 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 16 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 17 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 19 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 20 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 21 May, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 22 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 23 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 24 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 26 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 27 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 28 May, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 29 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 30 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 31 May, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 2 June, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 3 June, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 4 June, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 5 June, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 6 June, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 7 June, 10:00 → 18:00

Tuesday 9 June, 10:00 → 18:00

Wednesday 10 June, 10:00 → 18:00

Thursday 11 June, 10:00 → 21:00

Friday 12 June, 10:00 → 18:00

Saturday 13 June, 10:00 → 18:00

Sunday 14 June, 10:00 → 18:00

Location

BOZAR/Centre for Fine Arts

Ravensteinstraat 23 1000 BRUSSELS

See also

Exhibitions

Two new exhibitions await: Berlinde De Bruyckere and When We See Us.

Partners

  • Intesa Sanpaolo