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Dedicated to Gluing Onself to Something

Gluing Oneself to Something (Interviews with Bruegel I)

(18.5.2023) Here comes the first of my interviews with Pieter Bruegel, the Elder.

– Mr. Bruegel, have you ever glued yourself to something?
– I beg your pardon.
– Glued. Like in gluing. Gluing oneself to something (as a protester). For example to one of your paintings. In a museum.
– What is a museum, young man?
– Well, imagine that some of your paintings are exhibited as a group in a hall, for the public to see. And now a protester – with a good cause or not – is gluing himself (or herself) to one of your paintings (or its frame). To raise attention. Since he (or her) is glued to the painting (or its frame).
– You mean chained? Chained, like in chaining. Chaining oneself to something (as a prisoner)? Taking the painting as a prisoner? This is very funny.
– Not exactly. But this is interesting. You mean chained – like the two monkeys in your painting of the two monkeys…
– They are not protesters. But, yes, in some way they are. At any rate: they are not glued. Why should I have used glue, if I had chains? And yes, the monkeys are also protesters, since they protest against the museum in which they are exhibited (chained to, or glued to, if you like), since the Berlin museum…
– I see that you understand the concept of glue (and of museum). But in your time, there was perhaps not such such effective glue as to…
– Young man, we had very effective glue. It had been in use since the Old Egyptians. And bookmaking demanded glue. But the making of glue was seen as a dull profession, and we had protesters, too. They were probably more radical than…
– But what would you make of protesters that attached themselves to one of your paintings (or its frame)…
– You mean that a protester is exhibiting himself (or herself) with one of my paintings attached to him (or her), so that he (or her) has to carry my painting around for the rest of his life like a martyr? Well, I would say: show me the protester (or her), and I will give you my opinion on the matter. It is also an aesthetical question.
– Is the question not rather a political (or philosophical) one?
– Yes, we have to talk on the cause too, and I can tell you, yes, I have once glued myself onto… And I can tell you we had glue that was rather more efficient than the one…
– Just for the sake of Bruegel scholarship: for what cause did you glue yourself onto…?
– I cannot tell you that. But it had to do with ships and their cargo, and we had also protests with… But not with monkeys.
– Mr. Bruegel, please. Just for the sake of Bruegel scholarship: please allow me to repeat the question: for what cause…
– Young man, the causes of my protest as a young man are none of your business. And yes, there were plenty of causes. But over time I had become more contemplative. My interest in the vita activa diminshed with the years, and I saw my role rather in,… in instigating conversation. On all causes. The techniques of gluing are interesting, too, but coming back to the two monkeys…
– Please Mr. Bruegel, we are having conversation for the sake of Bruegel scholarship. And it is also interested in the techniques of gluing… as well as chaining. There are plenty of good causes to repeat the question…
– Are you intending to chain me, respectively glue me…?
– Of course not.
– Then allow me a word on the museum of Berlin. It does not present my painting well. On the internet. But coming back to gluing. But why not using a reproduction of the painting, instead of the original?
– To raise attention?
– Yes, or a NFT (non-fungible-token)?
– For the sake of protest? It is rather a commercial…
– No, it is not. It is like gluing your painting forever to a cause. Since the blockchain cannot be manipulated. And if I want specific meaning, not arbitrary interpretation…
– Yes, but there is no attention for any meaning. The attention is in the public sphere. And the museum is part of that sphere (the selfpresentation of the museum on the internet is not).
– Therefore it has to be glue? In real life, and as in real life. But isnt’t that a bit outdated?
– Well, it is only symbolic. Which is also good for the sake of your painting. In the real world.
– Yes, I have heard that some protesters have been using color (or even soup). And for the sake of Bruegel scholarship: color pigments are too expensive to waste for protest. Use soup instead. But such that leaves little or better: no trace. But I cannot give you a recipe. This I give you: your time has probable more sophisticated soups, due to the general progress in the sciences.
– Thank you, Mr. Bruegel, for the conversation. We will come back to other subjects in our next session.

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