As you enter, you'll be dazzled by the space and reminded of the former glory of the Habsburg's multinational empire. At the peak of their power in the 1500s, the Habsburg family ruled Austria, Germany, northern Italy, the Netherlands—even Spain. And this museum offers great art from throughout the realm. The Italian collection is particularly strong.
當你進入時，你會為那空間所傾倒，並回想起哈布斯堡跨國帝國從前的榮耀。在 16 世紀他們權力的巔峰時，哈布斯堡家族統治奧地利、德國、北義大利、荷蘭－－甚至西班牙。此博物館展出來自整個疆域的傑出藝術品。義大利收藏品尤為出色。
Around the year 1500, Italy had a renaissance, or rebirth, of interest in the art and learning of ancient Greece and Rome. In painting, that meant that Greek gods joined saints and angels as popular subjects. The collection spans the all-stars of the Italian Renaissance:
西元1500 年左右，義大利出現對古希臘和羅馬藝術及知識愛好的復興 (或重生)。繪畫方面，那代表希臘諸神加入聖人及天使作為普遍流行的題材。收藏品含括義大利文藝復興時期的一流之作：
Titian—the Venetian—seemed particularly intimate with the pre-Christian gods and their antics. Here, in Mars, Venus and Amor, a busy cupid oversees the goddess of love making her case that war is not the answer. Mars—his weapons blissfully discarded—sees her point.
提香－－威尼斯人－－似乎對基督教前的神祇以及他們古怪誇張的姿態特別熟悉。這兒，在《戰神、維納斯和愛神》中，一位忙碌的邱比特偷看見愛之女神證明她「戰爭不是解答」的論點。戰神－－他的武器喜悅地棄置一旁－－明白她的意思。
The 22-year-old Raphael captured the spirit of the High Renaissance, combining symmetry, grace, beauty, and emotion. His Madonna of the Meadow is a mountain of motherly love. Mary's head is the summit and her flowing robe is the base, enfolding baby Jesus and John the Baptist. The geometric perfection, serene landscape, and Mary's adoring face make this a masterpiece of sheer grace. But the cross the little tykes play with foreshadows their gruesome deaths.
二十二歲的拉裴爾捕捉到文藝復興盛期的精神，混合了勻稱、優雅、美以及情感。他的《草地上的聖母》是象徵母愛的高山。瑪利亞的頭是頂峰，而她飄揚的長袍是基座，環抱住聖嬰耶穌和受洗者約翰。構圖上幾何的完美、明朗的景色以及瑪利亞慈愛的面容使這成為一幅表達出純粹優美的傑作。但小淘氣們玩耍的十字架則預示著他們可怕的死亡。
As the Baroque age succeeds the Renaissance, it brings more emotion and melodrama.
在巴洛克時期接續文藝復興時，它帶入更多情感及情節劇成分。
Caravaggio's Rosenkranz Madonna provides a strong contrast to Raphael's super sweet Madonnas. Caravaggio shocked the art world with brutally honest reality—ordinary Madonnas, hands that seem to speak, saints with dirty feet.
卡拉瓦喬的《聖母玫瑰經》提供一個與拉裴爾極為甜美模樣聖母的強烈對比。卡拉瓦喬以殘忍直白的現實震撼藝術界－－平凡無奇的聖母、似乎要表達什麼的手、有雙髒腳的聖人。
In David with the Head of Goliath, Caravaggio turns a harsh light on a familiar Bible story. David shows off the dripping head of the slain giant. The painting, bled of color, is like a black-and-white crime scene photo. This David is not a heroic Renaissance man like Michelangelo's famous statue, but a homeless teen that Caravaggio hired off the street. And the severed head of Goliath is none other than Caravaggio himself, an in-your-face self-portrait.
在《手提歌利亞頭顱的大衛》畫中，卡拉瓦喬將嚴酷的見解轉到熟悉的聖經故事上。大衛炫耀著被殺的巨人血淋淋的頭顱。那畫作，色彩黯淡，就像幅黑白的犯罪現場照片。這個大衛不像米開朗基羅著名的雕像一樣是個英勇的文藝復興時期男人，而只是個卡拉瓦喬從街上雇來的流浪少年。而歌利亞的斷頭正是卡拉瓦喬他自己，一幅挑釁的自畫像。
Art of the Northern Renaissance was different. Funded by the economic boom from Flemish and Dutch trading, it was more secular and Protestant than the Catholic-funded art of the Italian Renaissance. Rather than Madonnas and saints and Greek gods, you'll see peasants, landscapes, and food.
北方文藝復興的藝術則不同。由法蘭德斯人和荷蘭人貿易帶來的經濟繁榮所資助，它比起天主教贊助的義大利文藝復興藝術來得更世俗和帶新教風格。與其畫些聖母還有聖人還有希臘神祇，你會看到農夫、風景和食物主題。
Paintings are smaller, full of down-to-earth objects, designed to appeal to the thriving merchant class. Northern artists embraced the details, encouraging the viewer to appreciate the beauty in everyday things.
畫作尺寸小了些，充滿切實的物品，設計來吸引興起的商人階級。北方藝術家擁抱細節，鼓勵觀賞者去欣賞日常生活事物的美。
Pieter Bruegel the Elder was the Norman Rockwell of the 16th century—the undisputed master of the slice-of-life village scene. While a city slicker himself, Bruegel dressed down to observe country folk at play. Even as he highlighted their rustic simplicity of their lives, he showed their quirks as universal examples of human folly.
老彼得·布勒哲爾為 16 世紀的諾曼·洛克威爾(美國 20 世紀早期的重要畫家)－－描繪鄉村日常生活場景公認的大師。雖然本身是個城市俗，布勒哲爾打扮樸實去觀察玩樂的鄉村人民們。在他強調他們生活中的鄉村純樸性同時，他也將他們行為上的古怪表現為人類愚蠢的通用範例。
In his Farmers' Dance, there's not a saint in sight, but there is a message. Bagpipes symbolized hedonism. In this scene, the church is ignored while the piper gets all the attention.
在他的《農夫舞會》中，放眼望去沒有半個聖人，但有一個訊息。風笛象徵享樂主義。在這一幕中，教堂被忽略，而吹笛人獲得所有注意。
- 「炫耀、賣弄」- Show Off
David shows off the dripping head of the slain giant.
大衛炫耀著被殺的巨人血淋淋的頭顱。
