1432_Portrait_of_Timothy_van_Eyck.txt

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Jan van Eyck 1390 – 1441
Portrait of a Man (Timothy)

oil on panel (33 × 19 cm) — 1432
National Gallery, London

This work is linked to 1 Timothy 1:2

Experts are not sure about the identity of the depicted man. Many say it is Timothy of Miletus, a musician from Antiquity. But it may also be the Timothy to whom Paul addressed two letters. That would explain the scroll of paper.

The balustrade is a fine demonstration of trompe l'oeil: it looks as if Timothy is sitting behind a real parapet, but in reality it is just a piece of fine painting.

The parapet shows three lines of text. The first reads, in Greek, ΤΥΜ.ωΘΕΟς. That could mean Timothy as well as the Latin words tum otheos, Then God.
"LEAL SOUVENIR" means loyal remembrance. The bottom line reads "Actu[m] an[n]o d[omi]ni. 1432. 10. die octobris. a. ioh[anne] de Eyck": made on October 10, 1432, by Jan van Eyck.

At first glance the seems somewhat flat. Closer inspection shows many realistic details - a large chin, lines on the forehead, wrinkles around the eyes.


Jan van Eyck biography

Jan van Eyck

1390 - 1441

Flemish painter, often lauded as the founding father of Dutch fine painting and the inventor of the oil paint technique. This last, however, is not strictly true. Van Eyck was one of the first to widely test the possibilities of oil painting, e.g. by not letting one layer dry before applying the next.

His exact dates of birth and death are not known. Probably born in Maaseik (hence his name) around 1390, Van Eyck works for John duke of Bavaria and Philip the Good, for whom he arranges his marriage to Isabella of Portugal. In 1432 Van Eyck settles in Bruges, where he dies in 1441.

Van Eyck's most famous work is the retable for the St Bavo's Cathedral in Ghent - a work in 20 panels with The Adoration of the Lamb of God as its central piece. The work is widely considered as one the highlights of the Northern Renaissance. It is not universally accepted that Jan painted it all himself; it is possible that he finished the work of his brother Hubert (or Hubrecht; 1370-1426). Another painting displayed on this site, The Three Marys at the Tomb, was probably created in collaboration with Hubert.

Some 30 works by Jan van Eyck survive, mostly religious works and portraits. The Man with the Red Turban, shown here, is probably a self-portrait.