Already active in The Hague at the end of the second decade of the fifteenth century, Jan van Eyck was
in the service of Count John of Holland from 1422 to 1424. It was during this time that he illuminated several pages of a \i Book of Hours\i0 (Turin, Museo Civico). These show the artist to be the true initiator of the new style of Flemish painting, no
w completely detached from the Gothic tradition of the Low Countries. In 1425 he was at the court of Philip III of Burgundy who entrusted him with diplomatic posts and missions that were described as secret. At Tournai, in 1427-28, he probably came into
contact with Robert Campin and Roger van der Weyden. Between the fall of 1428 and the end of the following year he was a member of the legation sent to Lisbon by the duke of Burgundy, to ask for the hand of King John IÆs daughter, Isabella, in marriage.
Between 1430 and 1431 on his return from the journey to the Iberian peninsula, he settled in Bruges where he was to remain until his death. In 1432 Jan completed the polyptych of \i The Adoration of the Lamb\i0 , also known as the \i Ghent Altar\i0 , whi
ch his brother Hubert had begun for the church of St. Bavon, a true cornerstone of the Flemish Renaissance. Over the following years the artist painted other masterpieces, such as the \i Arnolfini Marriage Group\i0 (Paris, Louvre) the \i Madonna with Ch
ancellor Rolin\i0 (Paris, Louvre), and the \i Madonna of Canon van der Paele\i0 (1436, Bruges, Municipal Museum). Van EyckÆs figures are set in a space that appears to be the product of empirical research and observations, rather than of the applicatio
n of mathematical rules of perspective in the Italian manner. Yet they maintain a grave monumentality, displaying in a naturalistic way details that have been rendered through careful attention to reflections and variations in light. The same great capac
ity for evocation can be found in his portraits, such as the \i Man in a Red Turban\i0 (London, National Gallery), \i Cardinal Albergati\i0 (Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum), or \i Giovanni Arnolfini\i0 (Berlin, Staatliche Museen/Staatliches Museum).
Even during the artistÆs lifetime, his contemporaries were impressed by his wonderful ability to represent the infinite aspects of the spectacle of nature, and by the luminous and translucent quality of the color he used. In this sense, van EyckÆs fame
is enormous and his work has exercised a considerable influence on European painting.
