Robert Campin (c. 1375 – 1444), now usually identified with the Master of Flémalle (earlier the Master of the Merode Triptych, before the discovery of three other similar panels), was the first great master of Flemish and Early Netherlandish painting. Campin's identity and the attribution of the paintings in both the "Campin" and "Master of Flémalle" groupings have been a matter of controversy for decades. Campin was highly successful during his lifetime, and thus his activities are relatively well documented,but he did not sign or date his works, and none can be securely connected with him. A corpus of work attached to the unidentified "Master of Flémalle,"so named in the 19th century after three religious panels said to have come from a monastery in Flémalle. They are each assumed to be wings of triptychs or polyptychs, and are the Virgin and Child with a Firescreen now in London, a panel fragment with The Crucified Thief in Frankfurt, and the Brussels version of the Mérode Altarpiece.
Campin was active by 1406 as a master painter in Tournai, in today's Belgium, and became that city's leading painter for 30 years. He had attained citizenship by 1410, and may have studied under Jan van Eyck. His fame had spread enough by 1419 that he led a large and profitable workshop. He became involved in the revolt of the Brotherhoods in the early 1420s; this, along with an extra-marital affair with a woman named Leurence Pol, led to his imprisonment. Yet he maintained his standing and workshop until his death in 1444.
The early Campin panels shows the influence of the International Gothic artists the Limbourg brothers (1385 – 1416) and Melchior Broederlam (c. 1350 – c.1409), but display a more realistic observation than any earlier artists, which he achieved through innovations in the use of oil paints He was successful in his lifetime, and the recipient of a number of civic commissions.
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| Annunciation and Visitation by Melchior Broederlam (left panel of a pair) tempera on wood 166.5 x 125 cm Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon, France |
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| Les très riches heures du Duc de Berry (The very rich hours of the Duke of Berry) illumination on vellum Musée Condé, France |
Campin taught both Rogier van der Weyden (named in these early records as Rogelet de la Pasture, a French version of his name) and Jacques Daret. He was a contemporary of Jan van Eyck, and they met in 1427. Campin's best known work is the Mérode Altarpiece of c 1425–28.
Note: In some cases I am showing Campins works at a size that will show the whole painting, followed by and enlargement showing more detail.
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| 1410 attributed to Campin Portrait of St. Veronica 151.5 x 61 cm Städel Museum, Frankfurt |
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| 1410 attributed to Campin Portrait of St. Veronica 151.5 x 61 cm Städel Museum, Frankfurt |
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| Portrait of St. Veronica detail Städel Museum, Frankfurt |
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| 1410 Virgin and Child oil on wood panel 160 x 68 cm Städelsches Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt |
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| 1410 Virgin and Child oil on wood panel 160 x 68 cm Städelsches Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt |
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| c1410 The Holy Trinity 1 oil on wood panel 148.7 x 61 cm Städelsches Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt |
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| c1410 The Holy Trinity 1 oil on wood panel 148.7 x 61 cm Städelsches Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt |
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| 1415 John the Baptist oil on panel 17.2 x 12.2 cm Cleveland Museum of Art, Ohio |
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| 1415 Seilern Triptych with the Entombment of Christ oil on panel 60 x 48.9 cm (central panel without frame) 60 x 22.5 cm (wing panels without frame) Courtauld Institute Galleries, London |
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| 1415 Seilern Triptych with the Entombment of Christ detail |
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| 1415 Seilern Triptych with the Entombment of Christ detail |
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| 1415 Seilern Triptych with the Entombment of Christ detail |
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| 1415 Seilern Triptych with the Entombment of Christ detail |
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| 1415 Seilern Triptych with the Entombment of Christ detail |
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| 1420-25 The Annunciation oil on wood panel 76 x 70 cm Prado Museum, Madrid |
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| 1420-25 The Annunciation detail oil on wood panel 76 x 70 cm Prado Museum, Madrid |
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| 1420-25 The Annunciation detail oil on wood panel 76 x 70 cm Prado Museum, Madrid |
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| c1420 The Marriage of the Virgin Mary oil on oak panel 77 x 88 cm Prado Museum, Madrid |
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| c1420 The Marriage of the Virgin Mary detail oil on oak panel 77 x 88 cm Prado Museum, Madrid |
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| c1420 The Marriage of the Virgin Mary detail oil on oak panel 77 x 88 cm Prado Museum, Madrid |
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| c1420 The Nativity oil on wood panel 84.1 x 69.9 cm Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon, France |
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| c1420 The Nativity detail oil on wood panel 84.1 x 69.9 cm Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon, France |
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| c1420 The Nativity detail oil on wood panel 84.1 x 69.9 cm Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon, France |
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| c1420 The Nativity detail oil on wood panel 84.1 x 69.9 cm Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon, France |
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| 1420s Annunciation tempera on oak panel 61 x 63.7 cm Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts, Brussels |
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| 1420s Annunciation detail tempera on oak panel 61 x 63.7 cm Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts, Brussels |
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| 1420s Annunciation detail tempera on oak panel 61 x 63.7 cm Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts, Brussels |
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| c1425 Madonna by a Grassy Bank oil on oak panel 39 x 27 cm Staatliche Museen, Berlin |
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| 1425c Portrait of a Stout Man. Robert de Masmines (?) oil on wood panel 35.4 x 23.7 cm Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid |
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| c1427-32 Christ and the Virgin 1 (cut down at the top) oil and gold on wood panel 28.6 x 45.6 cm Philadelphia Museum of Art, PA |
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| c1427-32 Christ and the Virgin 1 (cut down at the top) oil and gold on wood panel 28.6 x 45.6 cm Philadelphia Museum of Art, PA |
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| c1427-32 Christ and the Virgin 1 (cut down at the top) oil and gold on wood panel 28.6 x 45.6 cm Philadelphia Museum of Art, PA |