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Early Flemish Painting

Type Object Region Low Countries Time c. 1420–1500

Early Flemish painting, also called Early Netherlandish painting, refers to the 15th-century tradition of the Low Countries excelling in oil techniqu…

Timeline

  1. c. 1420–1440Ghent · GhentThe brothers Jan van Eyck perfected multilayered oil technique, establishing with works such as the Ghent Altarpiece a new paradigm of minute realism, light-and-shadow texture, and symbolic narrative, laying the foundation of Flemish painting's reputation.
  2. c. 1440–1460Brussels · BrusselsPatrons such as Duke Philip III of Burgundy commissioned large altarpieces and court portraits; painters like Rogier van der Weyden established workshop-based production, and works were shipped to Italy along trade routes.
  3. 1461–1470Bruges · BrugesPainters such as Hugo van der Goes and Hans Memling were active in the 1460s, raising Flemish realism and emotional expression to new heights; Netherlandish painting influenced the visual language of the Italian Renaissance.

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