Flemish artworks tour

In the 15 century, Flemish artists began creating works that interested European art collectors.

They painted with a lot of detail, and their works had a shiny appearance achieved through the use of oil paint.

Flemish painters invented this technique.

This technique reached Italy through the painter Antonello da Messina.

Rogier van der Weyden and Hans Memling were 2 of the most important Flemish artists of the 15 century.

The painting by Rogier van der Weyden entitled The Descent from the Cross is one of the paintings that significantly influenced European art history.

In the 16 century, King Philip the Second collected works from the Flemish painter called Bosch.

Bosch painted scenes depicting fantasy worlds and criticised the behaviour of people, sometimes even with humour.

Today, his works are among the most visited by the public at the Prado Museum.

There are also works from this period by other important artists such as Joachim Patinir, the first known landscape painter, Pieter Bruegel the Elder, and Juan de Flandes.

Among the Flemish painters of the 17 century, notable figures include Jan Brueghel the Elder, Clara Peeters, Anthony van Dyck, and, above all, Peter Paul Rubens.

Peter Paul Rubens was the most successful Flemish artist in Europe.

The Prado Museum has the most extensive collection of his works because Spanish King Philip the Fourth commissioned many of them.

The works by Rubens include portraits and paintings on religious and mythological subjects, depicting figures in a grand manner.

Mythology is a collection of stories about gods, heroes and traditions specific to nations or cultures.