The first "Italianizer" was Jan Mabuse, whose "Adoration of the Kings" is in the National Gallery, London. He jNrent to Italy in 1508, and from that time until the coming of Rubens it was the fashion for Flemish painters to visit Italy, with the result that the originality of Flemish art was obscured by Italian mannerisms. Other "Italianizers" were Frans Floris (de Vriendt), who had studied under a pupil of Mabuse; and the landscapist, Paul Bril.
In the 17th century in Holland and Flanders there came a new democratic expression. Then it was that the "Dutch Little Masters," as they are sometimes called, raised the painting of common life to a great art. The artist had learned that beauty may be found anywhere. His trained vision found it in the courts of kings, the sordid market corner, the meadow or the barnyard, when the magical effects of light or colour touched his subject.
It was Rembrandt (1606-69) who first proved conclusively this principle of modern painting. He insisted that it was appearance that was important and not reality. He and the Spaniard, Velasquez (1599-1660), are accounted among the greatest of the world's painters who subordinated details to the impression of the whole.
Ranking not far below Rembrandt as portrait painters were the jovial Frans Hals of Haarlem and Van Dyck of Antwerp. The latter founded the English school of portrait painting, and left an incomparable gallery of historical portraits. Ver Meer, of Delft, and Jan Steen are among the other noted members of the Dutch school.
In Spain Velasquez was followed by Murillo, a less powerful but very charming painter. Landscape painting became highly developed for the first time in the 17th century. Earlier artists had regarded landscape as incidental to the figure or the story of the picture ; now it became the picture.
The Dutch painters Jacob Ruysdael (1628-82), Hobbema, and Cuyp were among the first to show how a faithful representation of natural scenes might be raised to high art expression.
In France, under the leadership of Claude Lorraine (1600-1682), there developed what is known as "classical landscape," in which very beautiful but more artificial effects were produced.