Limbourg Brothers
Pol, Herman, and Jehanequin Limbourg were all born after 1385 and died before 1416. Little individual is known about the sons of Arnold van Limbough, a sculptor. They are said to have been the nephews of Jean Malouel, court painter to the Duke of Burgandy. The three brothers were apprenticed to a goldsmith in Paris c. 1399/1400. On their way back to the Netherlands from Paris, they were imprisoned in Brussels. Malouel is reported to have persuaded his employer to bail them out; from 1402-1404, Pol and Jehanequin worked in Paris for the Burgundian noble. They are thought to have created the Bible moraliseé. When their patron died in 1404, they are thought to have worked for his son John the Fearless until the Duke of Berry, John's uncle, employed them. In his employ, the brothers created the Belles Heures and were chiefly responsible for Les Très Riches Heures, which was incomplete at the time of their deaths.
The Limbourg Brothers' style is a good example of the International Gothic, which is characterized by elegance and natural detail. They were among the first to portray specific landscapes with accuracy, and their work influenced the development of XV Century Netherlandish art.
Karen Rae Keck
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