Lucas van Leyden meets with his Colleaques

Lucas van Leyden (c. 1494-1533) introduced the Renaissance in the Northern Netherlands. The exhibition in the Lakenhal in Leiden features prints, drawings and paintings and focuses on the important role he played in this movement. Works by internationally renowned artists such as painter and printmaker Albrecht Dürer from Germany, court painter Jan Gossaert and landscape painter Joachim Patinir from the Southern Netherlands demonstrate the coherence with contemporary artists. This exhibition’s highlights are Lucas’ triptychs, which will be re-united on this special occasion. The Last Judgement from De Lakenhal has been a crowd-puller for many years and is Lucas’ only work that has remained in Leiden throughout its history. It will be showcased together with two other masterpieces: Dance around the Golden Calf from the Rijksmuseum and The Healing of the Blind Man of Jericho from the Saint Petersburg Hermitage. At a very young age, Lucas van Leyden allready produced exceptional prints, which is why he became known as a child prodigy. He was particularly renowned for his engravings which were sold all over Europe. In addition to prints, he also made paintings and drawings. He was regarded as an innovative artist because of his graphic work and the introduction of Italian Renaissance iconography in the Netherlands. His reputation reached as far as Italy and Germany. He was not only appreciated by contemporary art connoisseurs and artists, but also by artist biographers such as Giorgio Vasari and Karel van Mander who highly praised him in their writings.At a very young age, Lucas van Leyden allready produced exceptional prints, which is why he became known as a child prodigy. He was particularly renowned for his engravings which were sold all over Europe. In addition to prints, he also made paintings and drawings. He was regarded as an innovative artist because of his graphic work and the introduction of Italian Renaissance iconography in the Netherlands. His reputation reached as far as Italy and Germany. He was not only appreciated by contemporary art connoisseurs and artists, but also by artist biographers such as Giorgio Vasari and Karel van Mander who highly praised him in their writings.