EYCK, Barthélemy d'

Our knowledge of the life and work of this artist is based on a series of assumptions. It is thought that he trained in the workshop of Jan van Eyck, and from the 1440s onwards executed miniatures and panel paintings for Ren� of Anjou and others of his circle. It is uncertain whether he accompanied Ren� to Italy in 1440, during the latter’s brief rule over Naples, or whether he was employed by the Dukes of Burgundy during that period. Following Ren�’s return in the mid-1440s, Barth�lemy added about five miniatures to one of his older codices (London, British Library), and also illuminated a book of hours for him, in collaboration with Enguerrand Quarton (New York, The Morgan Library and Museum).

Between 1443 and 1445 he is believed to have executed a winged altarpiece for Aix-en-Provence. After another extensive series of miniatures, he produced his masterpieces, namely seven miniatures in a French edition of Boccaccio’s Th�s�ide (Vienna, �sterreichische Nationalbibliothek) and the 16 illustrations to the Livre du Cuer d’Amour espris - these latter representing one of the supreme artistic achievements of their day.

The Annunciation, which since the Revolution has been kept in the church of St Mary Magdalene in the Provencal capital, was the main panel of an altarpiece which the clothmaker Pierre Corpici commissioned for the altar which he had endowed in the city’s Saint-Sauveur cathedral. While the first impression is of a plain and monumental setting, the painter in fact pays loving attention to the details of the stained glass, the leaves flickering like flames on the capitals, and the heads and bats in the tracery.

Although Barth�lemy d’Eyck can be assumed to be related to Jan and Hubert van Eyck, the present work falls fully in line with artistic practice in the Mediterranean sphere - from its thicker, less translucent application of paint to the gold brocade of the Virgin’s cloak. At the same time, its astonishing realism at times goes far beyond even Netherlandish painting. There is a pronounced three-dimensionality to the composition as a whole; forms are weighty and substantial, while skin surfaces are sharply differentiated. Mary’s hair is not perfectly coiffured, but instead full, almost flaxen. The wonderfully observed, plump cushions and the bunch of flowers also have a quite different spatial presence to their northern counterparts. This impression is reinforced on the one hand by the relatively plain metal jug and the quietly unforced arrangement of the flowering Marian symbols plucked, so it seems, at random from the garden, and on the other by the surrounding empty space and the sharp, spotlight type of lighting.

The architecture also appears solid and three-dimensional, and is wonderfully observed against the light - as in the tracery on the left above the angel’s wing, and the roundel through which the Christ Child floats down, already shouldering his Cross. The figures listening to Mass and strolling around at the back of the church lend the composition an astonishing depth, even though the artist - doubtless deliberately - has not attempted to depict the room and the figures to scale.

This manuscript contains the French translation of the Italian narrative poem Il Teseida delle nozze d’Emilia by Boccaccio. Two related knights of noble birth fall in love with the beautiful Emilia. Although the champion of the tournament wins her as his bride, he dies as a result of his injuries, so the loser marries Emilia with the help of Venus.

There are a few surviving illuminated manuscripts of this work, among them that in Vienna stands out by the title pages that introduce each sonnet. The great patron of book illumination King Ren� of Anjou commissioned Barth�lemy d’Eyck to decorate the Th�s�ide. However, he executed only a small number of illustrations, and his place was soon taken by another artist, who is known by his illustrations for the manuscript of the Geneva Boccaccio.

The title miniature of the fourth book (folio 64r) depicts the release of Arcita from goal. Dressed entirely in black to signify the pain of parting, and with no hope of ever seeing his beloved Emilia again, Theseus releases Arcita from the dungeon thanks to his friend Palemone’s intervention, and is sent instead into permanent exile.

The miniature on folio 39r depicts Theseus’s triumphal procession through Athens.

This portrait, produced in southern France, reflects the artistic exchange between the northern and southern countries of Europe. The composition reveals detailed knowledge of the early Flemish portrait, especially the work of Jan van Eyck. The artist was a court painter to Ren� I, Duke of Anjou and King of Naples.

Ren�, Duke of Anjou, was noted for his cultural interests. At his court in Angers a captivating style of painting flourished for a short time in mid-fifteenth century. The masterpiece of his court is a richly illustrated manuscript entitled Livre du cuer d’amours espris, or Book of the heart Seized by Love, an allegorical romance, typical of the literature of courtly love, that was written by the Duke himself. The miniatures were executed soon after the completion of the text by Ren� in 1457. The unknown illuminator, called the Master of Ren� of Anjou, was later identified as Barth�lemy d’Eyck. The details of the text demanded that the artist contend with unusual lighting effects for times of the day, night and dawn. What distinguishes these miniatures are the uncanny sensory effects of light that are achieved through the use of artificial light sources introduced in the night scenes, and the radiance of a burst of sunlight near the horizon at daybreak.

This manuscript contains an allegoric chivalric romance about the quest for requited love. The author of the text is Ren� d’Anjou (1409-1480), King of Naples, Sicily, Hungary and Jerusalem, Duke of Anjou, Bar and Lorraine, Count of Provence. After numerous political failures, he withdrew in 1442 to his castles at Angers and Tarascon, where he led an extravagant life and hosted numerous feasts and tournaments. He proved himself to be not only a great patron of the arts, but also an author.

King Ren� ordered a series of illuminated manuscripts from different artists, most of them devoted to chivalric and gallant themes and the courtly splendour of the late Middle Ages. Among these books is the greatest work written by the king himself, the allegoric tale of the adventures of Cuer the Knight, in the style of a medieval romance in prose.

The miniatures were executed by Barth�lemy d’Eyck. They do not only represent the culmination of this artist’s work but are also an outstanding achievement of the entire period. In the miniature on folio 15r, Cuer, clad in armour, stands in front of a mysterious black stone. Dawn is breaking, the sun has just risen behind a hedge on the horizon. The night before, Cuer had been unable to read the inscription on the stone. Now he reaches out with his left hand to decipher line after line the threatening message.

Ren�, Duke of Anjou, was noted for his cultural interests. At his court in Angers a captivating style of painting flourished for a short time in mid-fifteenth century. The masterpiece of his court is a richly illustrated manuscript entitled Livre du cuer d’amours espris, or Book of the heart Seized by Love, an allegorical romance, typical of the literature of courtly love, that was written by the Duke himself. The miniatures were executed soon after the completion of the text by Ren� in 1457. The unknown illuminator was called the Master of Ren� of Anjou, later identified as Barth�lemy d’Eyck. The details of the text demanded that the artist contend with unusual lighting effects for times of the day, night and dawn. What distinguishes these miniatures are the uncanny sensory effects of light that are achieved through the use of artificial light sources introduced in the night scenes, and the radiance of a burst of sunlight near the horizon at daybreak.

The most famous miniature is that illustrating Amour, god of love, taking the heart of the love-sick king, who is bedridden, and offering it to the personification of Desire, dressed in white Italianate costume.

In the miniature on folio 51v, King Cuer is shown getting into a boat with his attendants.

This manuscript contains the description of the preparations for a tournament, of the tournament itself and of the final banquet. It was probably commissioned by Louis of Luxembourg for his daughter Mary. The author of the text is Ren� d’Anjou (1409-1480), King of Naples, Sicily, Hungary and Jerusalem, Duke of Anjou, Bar and Lorraine, Count of Provence. After numerous political failures, he withdrew in 1442 to his castles at Angers and Tarascon, where he led an extravagant life and hosted numerous feasts and tournaments. He proved himself to be not only a great patron of the arts, but also an author. With his Book of Tournaments he had published a practical handbook of armoury and weapons.

The codex in Paris was illustrated by Barth�lemy d’Eyck. The composition was first drawn on paper in brown colour and eventually watercoloured. The armed contestant emblazoned with his heraldic device is taken from a copy on vellum (Ms. fran�ais 2695) of the Book of Tournaments illustrated by other illuminators in the 1480s.

This manuscript contains the description of the preparations for a tournament, of the tournament itself and of the final banquet. It was probably commissioned by Louis of Luxembourg for his daughter Mary. The author of the text is Ren� d’Anjou (1409-1480), King of Naples, Sicily, Hungary and Jerusalem, Duke of Anjou, Bar and Lorraine, Count of Provence. After numerous political failures, he withdrew in 1442 to his castles at Angers and Tarascon, where he led an extravagant life and hosted numerous feasts and tournaments. He proved himself to be not only a great patron of the arts, but also an author. With his Book of Tournaments he had published a practical handbook of armoury and weapons.

The codex in Paris was illustrated by Barth�lemy d’Eyck. The composition was first drawn on paper in brown colour and eventually watercoloured. The picture shows the illustration on folio 3v.

This illustration in the ‘Livre des Tournois du Roi Ren�’ shows the presentation of the flags and helms of a knightly tournament in a cloister.

This manuscript contains the description of the preparations for a tournament, of the tournament itself and of the final banquet. It was probably commissioned by Louis of Luxembourg for his daughter Mary. The author of the text is Ren� d’Anjou (1409-1480), King of Naples, Sicily, Hungary and Jerusalem, Duke of Anjou, Bar and Lorraine, Count of Provence. After numerous political failures, he withdrew in 1442 to his castles at Angers and Tarascon, where he led an extravagant life and hosted numerous feasts and tournaments. He proved himself to be not only a great patron of the arts, but also an author. With his Book of Tournaments he had published a practical handbook of armoury and weapons.

The codex in Paris was illustrated by Barth�lemy d’Eyck. The composition was first drawn on paper in brown colour and eventually watercoloured. The illustration on folio 23v shows tournament caskets.