Eyck

Eyck, Jan Van (d. 1441), also called Van Brugge, a noted Netherland painter. He was taught by his brother, whom he soon outstripped. The family dwelt chiefly at Bruges, but in 1420 he, with his brother Hubert and sister Margaret (also a painter), went to Ghent to paint for the cathedral there a picture of the Adoration of the Lamb. This was on wood, with side panels, and contained 300 figures. Jan was also court painter to Philip the Good of Burgundy, and utilised his court surroundings for filling in the details of his pictures. His brother and sister both died before the picture was finished, in 1432, after which he returned to Bruges, and remained there till his death. He was one of the encouragers of oil painting, and was very successful as a painter on glass, and did much to introduce perspective into painting. His faces, colouring, and grouping are good, but the deficient anatomical training of the day is visible in the extremities. Among his pupils are said to have been Albert Durer, Hans Memling, and Holbein.