The curiosity of looking closely at The Garden of Earthly Delights; a reflection on Bosch.

Abstract

Applying Erving Goffman’s frame theory within an interdisciplinary reflection on artistic works such as The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch reinforces the practice of independent cultural management and serves as a tool for strategic decision-making, narrative construction, and the identification of visual structures that enable the organization, interpretation, and symbolic construction of strategic action. From the concept of “frames” as interpretative schemes, we can understand the symbolic path individuals use to make sense of the world—their world. This paper analyzes the four panels of the artwork— Creation, Paradise, the Garden, and Hell—as a reflection that highlights the diverse moral and social narratives and the parallels shared throughout the artwork. It proposes an intersection between art, interpretive social theory, and cultural management practice by positioning the cultural manager as a viewer of the artwork, alternating between a macrovision and a detailed focus to develop meaningful and sustainable cultural projects within their community and capacities.