Moving Pictures: The Temptation of Saint Anthony by Joos van Craesbeeck

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Episode three explores the dark, demonic landscape of a 17th Century Flemish masterpiece - The Temptation of Saint Anthony - by Joos van Craesbeeck (Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe). A giant screaming head dominates the painting; from its mouth pour tiny devils and the forehead has been peeled back to reveal a miniature artist working inside the brain. Cathy FitzGerald takes a closer look at Craesbeeck’s strange critters in the context of the early modern fascination with curiosity cabinets, monsters – and the devil. (Photo: Joos van Craesbeeck, The Temptation of Saint Anthony © Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe)