DAVID, Gerard, Studio of

DAVID, Gerard, Studio of, b. The Netherlands, ca. 1450 - 1523, and Gerard David was an Early Netherlandish painter and manuscript illuminator known for his brilliant use of color. Only a bare outline of his life survives, although some facts are known. He was very successful in his lifetime and probably ran two workshops in Antwerp and Bruges. Like many painters of his period, his reputation diminished in the 17th century until he was rediscovered in the 19th century. Today, most view him as a master colorist, and a painter who worked in a progressive, even enterprising, mode, casting off his late medieval heritage and proceeding with a certain purity of vision in an age of transition. David's surviving work mainly consists of religious scenes. They are characterized by an atmospheric, timeless, and almost dream-like serenity, achieved through soft, warm, subtle colorisation, and a masterful handling of light and shadow. He is innovative in his recasting of traditional themes. In Bruges, David came directly under the influence of Hans Memling, the master whom he followed most closely. It was from him that David acquired a greater realism in the rendering of human form, and an orderly arrangement of figures. Furthermore, visited Antwerp in 1515 and was impressed with the work of Quentin Matsys, who had introduced a greater vitality and intimacy in the conception of sacred themes. Together they worked to preserve the traditions of the Bruges school against influences of the Italian Renaissance., “DAVID, Gerard, Studio of,” UCSB ADA Museum Omeka, accessed December 22, 2024, http://art-collections.museum.ucsb.edu/items/show/3191.