Jour fixe des Instituts für die Erforschung der Frühen Neuzeit in Kooperation mit Geschichte am Mittwoch

Markéta Ježková (Praha): Laugh in the Picture Gallery of Rudolf II Habsburg

Moderation: Friedrich Polleroß

HYBRID – VOR ORT UND ONLINE UNTER:

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Abstract:

The lecture will try to shed light on the role humour and laughter played in the life of Emperor Rudolf II Habsburg (1552–1612). While the writer Gustav René Hocke described him as „having a sense of humour“, historical accounts from visitors to Prague Castle after 1600 painted a picture of a less cheerful monarch. They reported his poor health and attacks of melancholy. However, the imperial art collection featured over two hundred works designed to amuse and entertain viewers, encompassing various forms of early modern comedy. Court painters cleverly incorporated humour into their paintings, which engage audiences today. The lecture will focus on a fascinating question: What caused Rudolf II to laugh, when and where, with whom, and to what effect?

Zum Vortragenden:

Markéta Ježková studied French, aesthetics (MA 2010) and art history at the Faculty of Arts, Charles University (Ph.D. 2018). She worked as an educator at the National Gallery Prague for many years. In 2019, she joined the Institute of Art History, Czech Academy of Sciences, as a researcher focusing on art collecting in the 16th and 17th centuries, particularly at the court of Rudolf II. Lately, her main interest has been in digitizing and increasing the accessibility of the imperial collection to a broader audience.

Rückfragen: martina.fuchs@univie.ac.at