If we’re talking about stuff like Hieronymus Bosch, then that’s the least bizarre and thought-provoking stuff he’s done. But you don’t need a doctor to puzzle it out. Discovering that people that lived over 700 years ago had the same sense of humor as you and your friends is always fun.
To answer the question: I think it’s both. You might painstakingly render life-like butt-trumpets to take a jab at the church, but you’d absolutely do it for a fart joke after doing portraits all the time. At the same time, such works were the domain of well-off people - both the artists and their patrons - so I find it hard to believe that a pithy subtext isn’t on offer too.
If we’re talking about stuff like Hieronymus Bosch, then that’s the least bizarre and thought-provoking stuff he’s done. But you don’t need a doctor to puzzle it out. Discovering that people that lived over 700 years ago had the same sense of humor as you and your friends is always fun.
To answer the question: I think it’s both. You might painstakingly render life-like butt-trumpets to take a jab at the church, but you’d absolutely do it for a fart joke after doing portraits all the time. At the same time, such works were the domain of well-off people - both the artists and their patrons - so I find it hard to believe that a pithy subtext isn’t on offer too.