\ATXsh255 The first definite information we have about the painter places him in Bruges in 1468,
where he collaborated on the decorations for the wedding of the duke of Burgundy, Charles the Bold. Between 1475 and 1477 he painted his most important work, commissioned from him by Tommaso Portinari, the MediciÆs representative in Bruges û the \i Porti
nari Altarpiece\i0 (Florence, Uffizi), whose large size is very unusual for paintings of the time. Stylistic analysis allows a few other paintings to be placed alongside this work whose attribution is certain. They show that the artist was influenced by
the work of Jan van Eyck and Roger van der Weyden and include the Vienna diptych (Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum). Later on, Hugo van der Goes undoubtedly came into contact with some contemporary Italian paintings, and this induced him to handle space
in a more monumental manner, as can be seen in the \i Adoration of the Magi\i0 (Berlin, GemΣldegalerie). In 1477, suffering from mental illness, the artist joined a monastery near Brussels as a lay brother, but did not completely cease his activity. It
was during this period, in fact, that he painted the \i Death of the Virgin\i0 (Bruges, Groeningenmuseum), which displays a more acute dramatic tension expressed through the irrepressible animation of the figures.\ATXsh4607
