On Rai5 a journey into the Inferno of Bosch and Dante.

In the new installment of Art Night to be aired in its Rai premiere on Friday, Jan. 21, on Rai5 at 9:15 p.m., Neri Marcorè will take viewers on a Journey to Hell, between the one imagined by Hieronymus Bosch to the one that sprang from Dante’s Eyes.

It starts with Bosch, the Devil with Angel Wings by Eve Ramboz and Nathalie Plicot, produced by INA with the participation of France Télévisions. A painter, a contemporary of Leonardo da Vinci, Hieronymus Bosch is at the crossroads between the symbolic legacy of the Middle Ages and the arrival of humanism from the Renaissance. His authentic works are rare: just over twenty paintings and eight drawings preserved in the world’s greatest museums. The documentary reveals the artist and his thoughts, through the “decryption” of his paintings, placed in the context of the period: it will go between documentary parts, filmed in museums as well as in the Bois le Duc where Hieronymus Bosch was born and from which he almost never left, and animations showing the details of the paintings, leading the audience into the imagination of this 15th-century genius. Art historians who are specialists on the artist, such as Reindert Falkenburg (Professor of Art History and Modern Culture, NYU Abu Dhabi) and Joseph Léo Koerner (Professor of History of Art and Architecture, Harvard), evoke his life and reveal the elements of his art that are still capable of captivating today.

The evening continues with Gli occhi di Dante, written and directed by Adolfo Conti, produced by Doc Art with Leonardo Film, SWR, in collaboration with ARTE and Rai Cultura. What did Dante Alighieri’s eyes see when he conceived his journey from Hell to Paradise? They saw the beauty of Italian art, the power of nature, and the dramatic and violent experience of his own life. Seven hundred years after his death in September 1321, an original interpretation of the Supreme Poet through the discovery of his visual universe. Prominent among his works is the Divine Comedy: the account of his descent into Hell, ascent to Purgatory, and ascent to Paradise. The Comedy is a unique work in the history of world literature because of its subject matter, the quality of its poetic writing, and its perfect compositional structure. Above all, the Commedia deals with universal themes, such as the meaning of existence, the reasons for pain and evil, and the relationship between freedom of choice and the randomness of fate. To these questions Dante finds the strongest answers in the men and women he meets along his journey: ruthless leaders, passionate and free women, betrayed emperors, generous friends, corrupt clerics. Around these extraordinary encounters, Dante presents us with a universe of images, made up of places and events, works of art, cities, landscapes, natural phenomena, historical events, and moments of everyday life. The Comedy recounts in images the life of its creator. Inspired by the exceptional visuality of Dante’s writing comes The Eyes of Dante. Like the tiles of a mosaic, Dante’s visions will make it possible to compose an unprecedented portrait of the most complex soul of the Middle Ages.

Hosted by Neri Marcorè, Art Night is a program by Silvia De Felice and Emanuela Avallone, Massimo Favia, Alessandro Rossi, with direction by Andrea Montemaggiori.

Image: Animation of the monster on skates from the Triptych of the Temptation of St. Anthony by Hyeronimous Bosch © INA

On Rai5 a journey into the Inferno of Bosch and Dante.

Warning: the translation into English of the original Italian article was created using automatic tools. We undertake to review all articles, but we do not guarantee the total absence of inaccuracies in the translation due to the program. You can find the original by clicking on the ITA button. If you find any mistake,please contact us.