Jan Brueghel the Elder (Born: 1568 – Death: January 13, 1625).
Some of the best know Flemish painters of the 16th Century were the
Brueghel family, a dynasty of painters including Pieter the elder, his
sons Pieter the Younger and Jan the Elder, along with Jan's son, Jan
the Younger and grandson Abraham. Jan the Elder was a painter of
Landscapes and still-life work of Flowers, as well as allegorical
and religious subjects. He famously collaborated with other artists,
such as Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640), who painted figures in his
landscapes.
His works in the Uffizi Gallery include, Landscape with a Ford, (or
River Crossing) and a Copy after Albrecht D�rer Calvary, of the
16th Century German master Albrecht D�rer (1471–1528). His
landscapes sometimes included religious figures or subjects, such
as, The Animals Entering the Ark, from 1615, and his many lush
representations of the Garden of Eden. His allegorical pieces were
unique and highly detailed representations of the senses, such as
hearing, sight and taste, some entirely still-life, others depicting
human and mythological characters. He became more focused on pure
landscapes and still-life paintings later in life, for which he
received much praise.
He had several nicknames endeared to him, including, Velvet Brueghel,
Flower Brueghel and Paradise Brueghel. Velvet was the recognition of
his fashionable taste in Velvet cloth, where flower recognized his
still life pieces and paradise was born of his popular representations
for the Garden of Eden. Among contemporaries such as Gillis van Coninxloo
(1544–1607) and Paul Bril (1554–1626), Brueghel's legacy was
strong, finding influence in his sons and grandsons, as well as later
centuries.