Antwerp inconoclast

The Iconoclasm that ravaged the Low Countries in 1566 is a key concept in the history of the Low Countries. This popular revolt, which was partly inspired by Protestant ideas, is primarily associated with iconoclasm (destruction of images) and is traditionally considered a turning point in the history of the Low Countries. It is therefore all the more remarkable that this incident has never until now received the attention it deserves in art historiography. On the basis of hitherto unpublished material, the author examines how famous painters of the time sought a new visual idiom. It emerges from his book that this barely studied art-historical period was a turning point and that the paintings of the time brought a subtle yet important reinterpretation of traditional religious iconography and style and formed the starting point of the Dutch Baroque style. Koenraad Jonckheere is an assistant professor at UGent. He studied history and art history in Leuven and defended his doctorate at the University of Amsterdam in 2005.