Synopses & Reviews
Famed for his focused observation of nature, Flemish painter Jan van Eyck (c. 1395and#150;1441) studied fauna and flora in their natural environment and under carefully chosen lighting conditions, and then achieved a breathtaking and convincing realism in his paintings. Each panel is a collection of minuscule details rendered with superb clarity from foreground to backgroundand#151;or at least that is the impression at first glance. As this book reveals, that is precisely where Van Eyckand#8217;s exceptional talent lay: He understood that the human brain is able to supplement visual perception where necessary. Here, details from Van Eyckand#8217;s paintings are organized by such themes as nature, architecture, daily life, fabrics, glass, jewelry and mirrors, and portraits. Opening with a biographical note and an essay on the technique of oil painting on panel, the authors explain the significance of the individual details and how Van Eyck achieved his innovative artistic results.and#160; With a preface by contemporary painter Luc Tuymans, this book is an unprecedented look at the work of a popular master.
Synopsis
Van Eyck is now seen as the artist who bridged the gap between the medieval and the modern. His story is the story of modern art - the turbulent clash of ideologies, the shifting and making of taste, the perfect timing of historical event and technological change, the politics of the art world and the cult of celebrity. The Enlightenment had quietly placed van Eyck in the Gothic tradition. Then Napoleon looted panels of his masterwork, the Ghent Altar-piece, and took them back to the Louvre. With his work centre stage in the greatest art gallery of the time, interest in van Eyck exploded across Europe. The nineteenth century saw the arrival of van Eyck mania, with ever-more fanciful tales in the art press of his life as inventor of oil painting, monkish painter, even arsonist and murderer; with scenes from his life, cheap colour prints and van Eyck carpets and mirrors vying for popular consumption; and with the claiming of van Eyck as the first Pre-Raphaelite. Today, van Eyck is regarded as the first realist painter, with popular and scholarly attention shifted from the Ghent Altar-piece - also looted by Hitler and stored in an Austrian salt-mine during the Second World War - to the riddle of his celebrated Arnolfini Portrait. Inventing van Eyck tells the extraordinary story of the making of an artist for the modern age.
Synopsis
Van Eyck is now seen as the artist who bridged the gap between the medieval and the modern. The Enlightenment had quietly placed Van Eyck in the Gothic tradition. Then Napoleon looted panels of his masterwork, the Ghent altar-piece, and took them back to the Louvre. Now, centre stage in the greatest art gallery of the time, interest in the work of Van Eyck exploded across Europe. The 19th Century saw Van Eyck mania with ever-more fanciful tales in the press of his life as monkish painter, murderer, arsonist, and inventor of oil-painting, with Van Eyck carpets and mirrors, scenes from his life and cheap colour prints of his work for popular consumption, and with the claiming of Van Eyck as the first Pre-Raphaelite. Today, Van Eyck is regarded as the first realist painter, with popular and scholarly attention now shifted from the altar-piece to the riddle of his celebrated Arnolfini marriage portrait.
About the Author
and#160; Maximiliaan Martens is professor of art history at Ghent University in Belgium and an expert on early Netherlandish painting. Annick Born is a researcher at Ghent University's Interdisciplinary Centre for Art and Science.and#160; Luc Tuymans, who contributed a preface, is a highly regarded contemporary painter with works in major collections around the world. He lives and works in Antwerp, Belgium.
Table of Contents
1. The Invention of Van Eyck 2. The Gothic Revival 3. German Taste & English Culture 4. English Taste & the Pre-Raphaelites 5. The Canonization of a Renaissance Artist 6. An Artist for the Modern Age.