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A careful examination will reveal, in the upper left corner, Albrecht Dürer’s monogram and the year 1492; this led to the painting being bought and catalogued for the first time (Ältester Katalog) as the work of the famous German Renaissance painter. However, the monogram and the year of execution were added much later, in the 18th century, probably owing to the high market value that Dürer’s work enjoyed in the epoch. Nevertheless, the style of the painting and the particular type of chaperon on the man’s head, lead to the conclusion that the painting was made in the early 1430s.The painting represents the portrait of an man recently identified with Jean IV de Brabant, being part of the series of works by the same artist, such as A Man in a Turban (1433) in the National Gallery, London, considered to be a self-portrait, or Portrait of Jan de Leeuw (1436), currently in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, that is a portrait of the jeweller. ©Dana Roxana Hrib, European Art Gallery Guidebook, Second edition, Sibiu 2011.

Details

  • Title: Man in a Blue Cap
  • Creator: Jan van Eyck
  • Creator Lifespan: c. 1390 - 1441-07-09
  • Creator Nationality: Dutch
  • Creator Gender: Male
  • Creator Death Place: Bruges
  • Date: c. 1430
  • Physical Dimensions: w13.2 x h19.1 cm (Without frame)
  • Photo copyright: ©Christof Weber
  • Collecting: Brukenthal National Museum, Sibiu, Romania
  • Artist Biography: Considered to be the founder of the Early Northern Renaissance, Van Eyck was born around the year 1390, in the east of Holland. He enjoyed a brilliant carreer as a court painter, working under the patronage of Duke Johann of Bavaria and that of Philip the Good of Burgundy. From the year 1430, he was active in Bruges, were he lived to the end of his life. Legend has it that Jan van Eyck invented painting in oils, which is contradicted by historical evidence; yet there is no doubt that he is the master who, for the first time, gave true brilliance and showed superb mastery of this manner of painting. He became famous for his extraordinary ability in representing space, while also becoming one of the foremost portrait painters in Europe. ©Dana Roxana Hrib, European Art Gallery Guidebook, Second edition, Sibiu 2011.
  • Alternate Title: Man with a Ring
  • Provenance: Brukenthal National Museum
  • Type: painting
  • Medium: oil on wood

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