Van Eyck

'These seductive books have slick production values, excellent illustrations, and smart texts. Each one is a fast-food, high-energy fix on the topic at hand' – The New York Times Book Review

Explore the painted world of a Flemish master with this concise and well-produced book

Often imitated but never equaled, Jan van Eyck (c. 1390-1441) left an indelible impression on Renaissance art and paved the way for future realist painters. With its unprecedented precision and masterful use of color, Arnolfini Double Portrait, depicting the wedding of a young couple, is testament to the mastery of the Flemish painter and leader of the Early Netherlandish school.

Van Eyck painted both secular and religious subject matter, emphasizing a naturalism and realism that moved seamlessly between 15th-century everyday life and poetic, heavenly settings. Working with oil paint, he innovated the medium, allowing for great intensity and depth of color. Trace the artist’s impressive oeuvre in this hardcover survey of his work, including altarpieces, religious figures, and commissioned portraits.

Featuring enlarged details and close analyses of masterpieces like the Ghent Altarpiece, this publication also offers a chronology of van Eyck’s production, including the output of his workshop which continued even after his death.

Each book in TASCHEN's Basic Art History series features approximately 100 color illustrations with explanatory captions, a detailed, illustrated introduction, a selection of the most important works of the epoch, each presented on a two-page spread with a full-page image and accompanying interpretation, as well as a portrait and brief biography of the artist.

• Author: Till-Holger Borchert
• Hardcover: 96 pages 
• Language: English
• Publication Date: June 2020
• ISBN: 9783836545051
• Product Dimensions: 21.7 x 26.5 cm