Artwork
The Tree Man
The Tree Man is a print by the Renaissance artist Hieronymus Bosch. It is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
- Accession no.
- 2025.139
- Credit line
- Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund
About this work
Overview
The Tree Man is an etching based on a drawing by Hieronymus Bosch, combining human, organic, and man-made elements into a fantastical creature.
Subject & Meaning
The creature is depicted with a hollow eggshell body, stilt-like legs, and arms ending in boats, with a tavern on its head. It may symbolize sinful decrepitude and folly, drawing on proverbial subjects common in Bosch's work, such as the ship of fools and the cracked egg.
Technique & Style
The print merges anthropomorphic, organic, and man-made elements, exemplifying Bosch's characteristic blending of disparate forms into monstrous hybrids.
History & Provenance
The etching is based on a drawing by Bosch, now held at the Albertina Museum, Vienna, and was later translated into a print by another artist.
Artist & collection
Artist
Hieronymus Bosch (; Dutch:; born Jheronimus van Aken; c. 1450 – 9 August 1516) was a Dutch painter from Brabant. He is one of the most notable representatives of the Early Netherlandish painting school. His work,…
l'Amoureux Guerrier
The Golden Age
The Life of the Virgin: The Flight into Egypt![Apparition of the Virgin in the Beech Tree (Faggio dell'apparizione della Vergine) [plate P], by Jacopo Ligozzi](https://artifactworldgallery.com/img/jacopo-ligozzi--apparition-of-the-virgin-in-the-beech-tree-faggio-dell-appar--86709d24a3e2a88e-w320.webp)
Apparition of the Virgin in the Beech Tree (Faggio dell'apparizione della Vergine) [plate P]
Tavern
The Crucifixion of Polycrates
Tavern
St. George and the Dragon (1)
St. George and the Dragon (2)
Polish Hussar
La simple Nature
Saint John Preaching in the Desert