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Jan van Eyck biography

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  • NAME: Jan van Eyck
  • OCCUPATION: Painter
  • BIRTH DATE: 1395
  • DEATH DATE: c. July 09, 1441
  • PLACE OF BIRTH: Maaseik, Bishopric of Liege, Holy Roman Empire
  • PLACE OF DEATH: Bruges, Netherlands
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Jan van Eyck, a Flemish painter, is generally regarded as the greatest northern European artist of the 15th century.

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Born sometime before 1395, Jan van Eyck, a Flemish painter, is generally regarded as the greatest northern European artist of the 15th century. He and his brother Hubert were some of the earliest Netherlandish painters to use oil paint in detailed panel paintings. He was employed by Philip III, duke of Burgundy, for portraits and other work. His masterpiece is the Adoration of the Lamb (1432).

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(born before 1395, Maaseik, Bishopric of Lige, Holy Roman Empire—died , before July 9, 1441, Bruges) Flemish painter. He is recorded in 1422 as a master painter working for John of Bavaria, count of Holland, and later was employed by Philip III the Good, duke of Burgundy. Securely attributed paintings survive only from the last decade of his career; 10 are signed and dated, an unusually large number for the period. He produced portraits and religious subjects that are unmatched for their technical brilliance, their intellectual complexity, and the richness of their symbolism; he perfected the newly developed technique of oil painting. His masterpiece is the Adoration of the Lamb (1432), known as the Ghent Altarpiece, which he painted with his brother Hubert ( 1370–1426). He is commonly regarded as the greatest northern European artist of the 15th century. His works were widely copied and avidly collected.

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