Jan van Eyck. portraits

Jan van Eyck

A crane wedge - not a battle wedge - Merges into the autumn glow. The altar shines over the whole earth, Uniting all the signs and signs. To reduce all altars to one altar! The air is densely mixed with our life. For the joy and for the spirit of the terrible events of the Arc, thank heaven. A desecrated altar is a powerless temple. And a person is ground by reality - With dull millstones of miserable dramas. And work and hunger come together in battle. The heart of the altar shines amber, Invisibly

From the canvas of van Eyck we will descend, To move again on the road. Any of us is attracted by the love of God All-consuming. Bypassing Mecca, Lourdes and Rome, We go to the spiritual limits - Any luggage drags the body: We have to reckon with it. Bypassing the cemeteries where the Leaders, robbers, heroes sleep, We go forward (what if we go back? It would be a shame, I will not hide it). Bypassing the luxury of cities, Where there are restaurants, bars, rings, At stadiums - a terrible roar, In libraries - books, books.

Jan van Eyck (circa 1390-1441), Dutch painter. One of the founders of the art of the Early Renaissance in the Netherlands, Jan van Eyck in 1422-1424 worked on the decoration of the count's castle in The Hague, in 1425 he became the court painter of the Duke of Burgundy Philip the Good, in 1427 he visited Spain, in 1428-1429 - Portugal. Around 1430, Jan van Eyck settled in Bruges. The largest work of van Eyck is the famous "Ghent Altarpiece", begun, according to a later inscription on the outer wings, by van Eyck's elder brother Hubert (he worked in the 1420s in Ghent, died about 1426) and finished by Jan in 1432. Jan van Eyck is one one of the first masters of the portrait in Europe, who stood out in his work as an independent genre. Bust, usually depicting a model in a three-quarter turn, van Eyck's portraits ("Timothy", 1432, "Portrait of a man in a red turban", 1433, both in the National Gallery, London; portrait of the artist's wife Margareta, 1439, Municipal Art Gallery, Bruges) are distinguished strict simplicity and sophistication of expressive means. The impartially truthful and careful transfer of the appearance of a person is subordinated in them to a vigilant and penetrating disclosure of the main features of his character. Jan van Eyck created the first paired portrait in European painting - an image of the merchant Giovanni Arnolfini and his wife imbued with complex symbolism and at the same time an intimate and lyrical feeling. The problem of the participation of the artist Hubert van Eyck in the work on the altar remains open: according to most researchers, he could only begin work on the central part of the altar, but in general, the work was executed by Jan van Eyck. Despite the presence of archaic, Gothic features in a number of scenes of the altar, the “Ghent Altarpiece” opened a new era in the development of the art of the Netherlands. Complex religious symbolism is translated into concrete, vitally convincing and tangible images. With exceptional realism and unvarnished expressiveness, the naked figures of Adam and Eve are depicted on the outer doors of the altar. The figures of singing and playing angels on the side panels are distinguished by a convincing plastic tangibility. The landscape backgrounds in the “Adoration of the Lamb” scene in the center of the altar stand out with subtle poetry, mastery of the transfer of space and light-air environment. The pinnacle of van Eyck's work is the monumental altar compositions “Madonna of Chancellor Rolin” (circa 1436, Louvre, Paris) and “Madonna of Canon van der Pale” (1436, Municipal Art Gallery, Bruges). Developing and enriching the achievements of his predecessors, primarily R. Campin, he turns the traditional scene of worship of the Mother of God into a majestic and colorful image of the visible, real world, full of calm contemplation. The artist is equally interested in the person in all his unique individuality, and the world around him. In his compositions, portraits, landscapes, interiors, and still lifes act as equals and form a harmonious unity. The extreme thoroughness and at the same time the generality of painting reveal the inherent value and beauty of each object, which in van Eyck's work acquires real weight and volume, a characteristic surface texture. Details and the whole are in an organic relationship: architectural elements, furnishings, flowering plants, luxurious fabrics adorned with precious stones, as if embody particles of the infinite beauty of the universe: a panoramic landscape full of light and air in the “Madonna of Chancellor Rolen” is perceived as a collective image Universe. Van Eyck's art is imbued with a deep understanding of existence as a logical embodiment of God's providence, the expression of which was a strict, thoughtful and at the same time vitally natural construction of the composition, full of a subtle sense of spatial proportion. The solution of the creative problems facing van Eyck required the development of new means of artistic expression. One of the first he mastered the plastic possibilities of oil painting, using thin, translucent layers of paint, laid one on top of the other (the Flemish manner of multi-layered transparent painting). This pictorial method allowed van Eyck to achieve exceptional depth, richness and luminosity of color, subtlety of light and shade and colorful transitions. The sonorous, intense, pure tones of colors in van Eyck's paintings, permeated with air and light, form a single harmonious whole.
The work of the artist van Eyck, which most vividly recreated the beauty and living diversity of the universe, to a large extent determined the paths for the further development of Netherlandish painting, the range of its problems and interests. The powerful influence of van Eyck's art was experienced not only by the Dutch, but also by the Italian masters of the Renaissance (Antonello da Messina). http://smallbay.ru/vaneyck.html Quote from EIVA26 Read in full To your quote pad or community!
Jan van Eyck

Jan van Eyck (Dutch. Jan van Eyck, c. 1385 or 1390, Maaseik-1441 Bruges) - Flemish painter of the early Renaissance, master of portraiture, author of more than a hundred compositions on religious subjects. The younger brother of the artist and his teacher Hubert van Eyck (1370-1426).

Jan van Eyck's exact date of birth is unknown. Born in the Northern Netherlands in Maaseik. He studied with his older brother Hubert, with whom he worked until 1426. He began his activity in The Hague at the court of the Dutch counts, was first mentioned between 1422 and 1426 as "Master Jan" in the rank of chamber junker with Count Johann III. It is also known that he had only 2 brothers: the elder Hubert, and the younger Lambert and sister Margaret. From 1425 he was an artist and courtier of the Duke of Burgundy, Philip III the Good, who highly valued him as an artist and generously paid for his work. In 1427-1428. as part of the ducal embassy, ​​Jan van Eyck went to Spain, then to Portugal. In 1427 he visited Tournai, where he was received with honor by the local guild of artists. Probably met with Robert Campin, or saw his work. He worked in Lille and Ghent, in 1431 he bought a house in Bruges and lived there until his death.

Van Eyck is considered the inventor of oil paints, although in fact he only improved them. But it was after him that oil gained general recognition, oil technology became traditional for the Netherlands; in the 15th century came to Germany and France, from there - to Italy

Van Eyck's largest and most famous work is the Ghent Altarpiece, probably begun by his brother Hubert. Jan van Eyck commissioned the wealthy Ghent burgher Jodoc Veidt for his family chapel in 1422-1432. This grandiose multi-tiered polyptych of 24 paintings depicting 258 human figures is located in the Cathedral of St. Bavo in Ghent.

Among the masterpieces of Jan van Eyck are the Madonna of Chancellor Rolin, as well as a portrait of a merchant, a representative of the Medici banking house, Giovanni Arnolfini with his wife - the so-called Portrait of the Arnolfini couple.

Jan van Eyck died in Bruges in July 1441 (date of burial - July 9, 1441). In the epitaph of van Eyck it is written: “Here lies John, glorious with extraordinary virtues, in whom love for painting was amazing; he painted life-breathing images of people, and the earth with flowering herbs, and glorified all living things with his art ... "

He had several students, including the subsequently famous painter Petrus Christus.

“According to universal recognition, the most daring discoveries that marked a turning point in the artistic development (of humanity) belong to the painter Jan van Eyck (1385/90 - 1441). His greatest creation is a multi-leaf altar (polyptych) for the cathedral in Ghent. - E. Gombrich "History of Art".

Since up to the 15th century it was not customary to sign your paintings.

In honor of Van Eyck, a crater on Mercury and an asteroid (9561) van Eyck, which was discovered on August 19, 1987, are named.

Featured on a 1944 Belgian postage stamp.

This is part of a Wikipedia article used under the CC-BY-SA license. Full text of the article here →

Van Eyck, Jan, Dutch painter. One of the founders of the art of the Early Renaissance in the Netherlands, Jan van Eyck in 1422-1424 worked on the decoration of the count's castle in The Hague, in 1425 he became the court painter of the Duke of Burgundy Philip the Good, in 1427 he visited Spain, in 1428-1429 - Portugal. Around 1430, Jan van Eyck settled in Bruges.

The largest work of van Eyck is the famous "Ghent Altarpiece", begun, according to a later inscription on the outer doors, by van Eyck's elder brother Hubert (he worked in the 1420s in Ghent, died about 1426) and finished by Jan in 1432. Jan van Eyck is one one of the first masters of the portrait in Europe, who stood out in his work as an independent genre. Bust, usually depicting a model in a three-quarter turn, van Eyck’s portraits (“Timothy”, 1432, “Portrait of a man in a red turban”, 1433, both in the National Gallery, London; portrait of the artist’s wife Margareta, 1439, Municipal Art Gallery, Bruges) are distinguished strict simplicity and sophistication of expressive means. The impartially truthful and careful transfer of the appearance of a person is subordinated in them to a vigilant and penetrating disclosure of the main features of his character. Jan van Eyck created the first paired portrait in European painting - an image of the merchant Giovanni Arnolfini and his wife imbued with complex symbolism and at the same time with an intimate and lyrical feeling.

The problem of the participation of the artist Hubert van Eyck in the work on the altar remains open: according to most researchers, he could only begin work on the central part of the altar, but in general, the work was executed by Jan van Eyck. Despite the presence of archaic, Gothic features in a number of scenes of the altar, the “Ghent Altarpiece” opened a new era in the development of the art of the Netherlands. Complex religious symbolism is translated into concrete, vitally convincing and tangible images. With exceptional realism and unvarnished expressiveness, the naked figures of Adam and Eve are depicted on the outer doors of the altar. The figures of singing and playing angels on the side panels are distinguished by a convincing plastic tangibility. The landscape backgrounds in the “Adoration of the Lamb” scene in the center of the altar stand out with subtle poetry, mastery of the transfer of space and light-air environment.

The pinnacle of van Eyck's work is the monumental altarpieces “Madonna of Chancellor Rolin” (circa 1436, Louvre, Paris) and “Madonna of Canon van der Pale” (1436, Municipal Art Gallery, Bruges). Developing and enriching the achievements of his predecessors, primarily R. Campin, he turns the traditional scene of worship of the Mother of God into a majestic and colorful image of the visible, real world, full of calm contemplation. The artist is equally interested in the person in all his unique individuality, and the world around him. In his compositions, portraits, landscapes, interiors, and still lifes act as equals and form a harmonious unity. The extreme thoroughness and at the same time the generality of painting reveal the inherent value and beauty of each object, which in van Eyck's work acquires real weight and volume, a characteristic surface texture. Details and the whole are in an organic relationship: architectural elements, furnishings, flowering plants, luxurious fabrics adorned with precious stones, as if embody particles of the infinite beauty of the universe: a panoramic landscape full of light and air in the “Madonna of Chancellor Rolen” is perceived as a collective image Universe.

Van Eyck's art is imbued with a deep understanding of existence as a logical embodiment of God's providence, the expression of which was a strict, thoughtful and at the same time vitally natural construction of the composition, full of a subtle sense of spatial proportion. The solution of the creative problems facing van Eyck required the development of new means of artistic expression. One of the first he mastered the plastic possibilities of oil painting, using thin, translucent layers of paint, laid one on top of the other (the Flemish manner of multi-layered transparent painting). This pictorial method allowed van Eyck to achieve exceptional depth, richness and luminosity of color, subtlety of light and shade and colorful transitions. The sonorous, intense, pure tones of colors in van Eyck's paintings, permeated with air and light, form a single harmonious whole.

The work of the artist van Eyck, which most vividly recreated the beauty and living diversity of the universe, to a large extent determined the paths for the further development of Netherlandish painting, the range of its problems and interests. The powerful influence of van Eyck's art was experienced not only by the Dutch, but also by the Italian masters of the Renaissance (Antonello da Messina).

- (Eusk), Dutch painter; see Van Eyck Jan. (Source: "Popular Art Encyclopedia." Under the editorship of Polevoy V.M.; M.: Soviet Encyclopedia Publishing House, 1986.) ... Art Encyclopedia

Wikipedia has articles on other people with this last name, see Eyck. Jacob van Eyck Full name Niderl. Jacob van Eyck Date of birth 1590 (1590) ... Wikipedia

Eyck (Eyck) Jan van (c. 1390 ≈ 1441), Netherlandish painter; see Van Eyck I... Great Soviet Encyclopedia

Dominic Lampson. Portrait of Jan van Eyck Jan van Eyck (senior) (Dutch. Jan van Eyck, c. 1385 or 1390 1441) Flemish painter of the early Renaissance, portrait master, author of more than 100 compositions on religious subjects, one of the first artists, ... ... Wikipedia

Eyck, Jan Wang- (Eyck, Jan van) Ok. 1390, Maaseik, near Maastricht 1441, Bruges. Dutch painter. The founder of the early Renaissance style in the painting of the Northern Renaissance. He studied, perhaps, with his older brother Hubert van Eyck. Court painter ... ... European Art: Painting. Sculpture. Graphics: Encyclopedia

Eyck (German Eick, Dutch Eijk, Eyck)) is a surname. Known bearers: Artists Eyck, Hubert van (1370-1426) Flemish painter, elder brother of Jan van Eyck. Eyck, Jan van (1385 or 1390 1441) Flemish painter of the early ... ... Wikipedia

Yang, see Eik Yang van. (Source: "Art. Modern Illustrated Encyclopedia." Under the editorship of Prof. A.P. Gorkin; M.: Rosmen; 2007.) ... Art Encyclopedia

See Van Eyck... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

- (eyck) Jan van (c. 1390, Maaseik, near Maastricht - 1441, Bruges), Dutch artist, one of the founders of the art of the Northern Renaissance. He studied, perhaps, with his older brother Hubert. The division of the artistic heritage of the brothers is ... ... Art Encyclopedia

Books

• Jan van Eyck. Album , The album contains 22 paintings by Jan van Eyck. The great Dutch artist Jan van Eyck stood at the origins of national painting. His religious creations and portraits… Category: Book archive Series: ALBUM Publisher: WHITE CITY, Manufacturer: WHITE CITY,
• Jan van Eyck , We offer art lovers a selection of images of the eight best paintings by famous artists who have made the glory of world painting. Executed at a high printing level, they will become ... Category: History and theory of arts Series: World Museum Publisher: Printed Sloboda, Manufacturer:

The works of masters of painting of past centuries, created at a time when the camera had not yet been invented, are one of the most reliable sources of information about the life, customs, appearance, taste preferences and other details of the life of our ancestors. Often they baffle researchers and cause controversy that has not subsided for decades. One of these canvases is a painting by the Flemish painter Jan van Eyck.

"Portrait of the Arnolfini" exhibited in the London National Gallery, which acquired it in 1842 for only 730 pounds.

A few words about Jan van Eyck

The artist was born sometime between 1385 and 1390 in the city of Maaseik in the Northern Netherlands. As a young man, he worked alongside his older brother Hubert. He was also a successful artist and is considered one of the authors of the famous Ghent Altarpiece. In 1425, master Jan became the court painter of the Duke of Burgundy, Philip III the Good. In 1431 he bought a house in the city of Bruges, where he lived until his death.

He is mistakenly considered the founder of oil painting. In fact, he simply improved this technique, but, undoubtedly, did a lot to make it become the main one in the Netherlands, from where it penetrated into Germany and Italy.

Giovanni Arnolfini

The man depicted on the famous painting by the artist Jan van Eyck is a wealthy merchant from the Italian city of Lucca. Even in his early youth, Giovanni Arnolfini went to Bruges, where he founded several textile manufactories producing expensive clothes for aristocrats. In addition, he was engaged in transactions for the purchase / sale of jewelry, including with European monarchs. It is believed that at the end of his life Arnolfini suffered bankruptcy. However, he continued to enjoy authority among the merchants and wealthy artisans of the city of Bruges and was even often invited as an arbitrator to resolve economic disputes.

Description of the painting by Jan van Eyck “Portrait of the Arnolfinis”

The canvas depicts a man and a woman standing at some distance from each other in the bedroom of a city house. The young man (Giovanni Arnolfini was 34 years old at the time of writing) is depicted almost full face. His right hand is raised to shoulder height, as if he is about to take an oath. His lady is standing, turning to the left. The room they are in is seen as if from above. Thus, the image does not have a single point of convergence of the horizontal and vertical axes.

The semantic center of Jan van Eyck's painting "Portrait of the Arnolfinis" is the joined hands of the characters. Their contact looks very ceremonial. The painter depicted the hands almost in the center of the canvas, thus giving them special meaning.

Description of figures

Both characters in the painting by Jan van Eyck (“Portrait of the Arnolfinis”) are dressed in festive attire. At the woman's toilet, a neatly straightened long train is visible, which means that she belongs to a wealthy burghers. She has a round belly. According to experts, he, like her posture in the form of the so-called Gothic curve, is most likely not a sign of pregnancy, but a tribute to fashion, thus emphasizing the main advantage of the lady - fertility.

The man wears a wide-crowned cylindrical hat, a wine-red velvet hook lined with fur, and an undergarment of expensive black material. Despite the rich outfit, it is obvious that the man is not an aristocrat. This is evidenced by his wooden shoes, which were worn by those who walked, while the representatives of the noble class rode horseback or moved on a stretcher.

Interior

Van Eyck's painting "Portrait of the Arnolfini" is distinguished by the careful drawing of all the details of the depicted room. On the floor, the viewer sees an expensive oriental carpet, a chandelier on the ceiling, a round mirror on the wall, a glazed upper part of the window, a bench with oranges. All this indicates that the owner is a wealthy person. Dominant in the setting is a bed with a canopy.

The Secret of the Beautiful Lady

If everything is clear with the man portrayed by van Eyck (“Portrait of the Arnolfini”), then the identity of the lady is in question.

Some art historians consider the painting to be documentary evidence of the merchant's marriage. Then the lady must be his wife. It is known that in 1426 Arnolfini married 13-year-old Constanza Trenta. However, in 1433 she died, that is, at the time of the painting she was not alive. Then either she was depicted posthumously in the picture, or this is the second wife of Arnolfini, about whom no documentary evidence has been preserved.

There is also an opinion that the lady in the portrait is Marguerite van Eyck, and the man is the artist himself. Indirect evidence of this hypothesis is the presence on the canvas of the image of the statuette of St. Margaret, which is located next to the face of the lady. At the same time, there is another version. According to her, Margarita was the patroness of women in childbirth, and her image next to the alcove means the wish for a speedy addition to the family.

Distinctive features

The portrait of the Arnolfini couple has several distinctive features. In particular, it is considered one of the earliest secular marital portraits in the history of European painting. Prior to the creation of this canvas, artists did not strive to depict small details and everyday details as carefully as they began to do after the appearance of paintings by Jan van Eyck.

Technique

Creating "Portrait of the Arnolfini", Jan van Eyck used oil paints. As already mentioned, at that time this technique was a new word in painting. It made it possible to apply transparent layers of paint one after another and to achieve fusion of strokes, obtaining softened contours. Being fluid, the oil dried much longer than the previously used tempera, allowing you to achieve the highest realism and even the illusion of three-dimensional space.

Symbols

In the Middle Ages, artists depicted on their canvases various objects and signs that conveyed to contemporaries information about the virtues or vices of the depicted persons.

While working on his famous painting, van Eyck also used the language of symbols. "Portrait of the Arnolfini" is still considered one of the most difficult to interpret works of world art, as experts to this day cannot come to a consensus about the secret meaning of some interior details:

• Chandelier. The lamp in the painting "Portrait of the Arnolfini" is made of metal. Only one candle burns in it. She is above the man. In the fact that the second candle went out, some historians see a hint that the painting depicts a dead woman.
• Dog. At the couple's feet is a Brussels Griffon puppy. He is closer to the lady and personifies her fidelity to her husband.
• Window. Although the characters are dressed in warm clothes lined with fur, a cherry tree can be seen in the background, which has many ripe fruits. Most likely, it should mean a wish for fertility in marriage.
• oranges. This is another symbol of fertility. They could also be used to emphasize the high property status of the family.

Mirror

The main symbolic element depicted on the canvas “Portrait of the Arnolfinis” is a mirror. It shows the reflection of the main characters, as well as two other people. Some researchers claim that the artist depicted himself in the mirror.

It is believed that these are witnesses to the marriage, which in those days could take place without the participation of a priest by signing a marriage contract. By the way, in the fact that a woman and a man extended their left hands to each other, historians see a hint of an unequal marriage. In the Middle Ages in Europe, such unions meant that in the event of the death of her husband, the widow and her children could not claim the inheritance, but received only a small fixed share of his property. In some countries, there was even a legal concept of "marriage of the left hand."

No less interesting is the frame of the mirror. It contains medallions depicting scenes of the Passion of Christ. It is interesting that these plots in the Middle Ages were interpreted as the marriage of the Savior with the church.

The history of the canvas until the 19th century

The painting "Portrait of the Arnolfinis" has a complicated history. Whether it was handed over to the customer or not is unknown. According to surviving documents, at the beginning of the 16th century, the portrait was the property of the Spanish courtier Don Diego de Guevara, who permanently lived in the Netherlands. He presented it to the stadtholder of the Spanish Netherlands, Margaret of Austria. She ordered to supply her with two wooden doors.

In 1530, the painting "Portrait of the Arnolfini couple" was inherited by the next stadtholder - Mary of Hungary, who transported it to Spain in 1556. The next owner of the canvas was Philip II. Until 1700, the painting was in the residence of the Spanish monarchs Alcazar. Fortunately, when a fire broke out there in 1734, the “Portrait of the Arnolfinis”, the symbols on which are still the subject of controversy, was already in the Royal Palace. Then his traces were lost.

The fate of the portrait after the Napoleonic wars

The canvas was found in 1815. Its new owner, British Colonel James Hay, told everyone that he had bought the painting in Brussels. However, many researchers believe that the “Portrait of the Arnolfinis” was in a convoy with works of art, which the French sent to Paris as trophies. It was captured by the British after the defeat of the troops of Joseph Bonaparte. The British, instead of returning the paintings and statues to Madrid, loaded them on a ship bound for London. Apparently, James Hay, who then commanded the 16th Dragoon Regiment and took part in the battle with the army of Napoleon's brother, appropriated several confiscated paintings, including the famous work by van Eyck.

The story of the painting "Portrait of the Arnolfini" did not end there. In 1816, Colonel Hay brought her to London and handed her over to the future King George the Fourth "for testing." It is known that the painting hung in the chambers of the Prince Regent until the spring of 1818, but then it was returned to its owner. In 1828, the colonel handed over the painting to a friend for safekeeping, and nothing was known about its fate for the next 13 years.

In 1842, the canvas was purchased for the London National Gallery for a rather modest amount, and until 1856 it was exhibited there under the title "Flemish Man and His Wife". Later, the inscription on the plate was changed. Today, the canvas is listed in all catalogs as "Portrait of the Arnolfinis", and crowds of spectators always gather in front of it.

Some documents testify that the "Portrait of the Arnolfini" had a top cover made of wood depicting a naked girl performing a ritual bathing of the bride. It was kept in the collection of paintings by Cardinal Ottaviani, but is now lost. The Italian historian Fazio described it in his De viris illustribus.

Another interesting fact: when the van Eyck painting was studied under infrared radiation, it turned out that all the details attributed to the symbolism were completed at the end of the work on the canvas. In other words, they were not part of the painter's intention, but appeared later, perhaps at the request of the customers.

Now you know the content of van Eyck's painting "Portrait of the Arnolfinis". Surely she will be in the center of attention of all those who like to solve historical mysteries for a long time to come, so it is quite possible that loud sensations await us.