Robert Campin

In the 1420s, he was a prominent figure in Tournai, serving as deputy dean of the painters' guild and a city councilor, though he later faced legal trials following political shifts.¹

In his masterpiece, the Mérode Altarpiece, he set the Annunciation in a contemporary Flemish middle-class home, a signature approach of blending sacred narratives with everyday domestic spaces.¹

He ran a large workshop in Tournai and trained next-generation masters like Rogier van der Weyden and Jacques Daret, ensuring his artistic style was widely passed down through his pupils.¹

Records show he met his contemporary Jan van Eyck in 1427. The meeting of these two pioneers who led the Northern Renaissance is considered a highly significant event in art history.¹

In 1432, he was sentenced to a year of banishment for an extramarital affair, but the sentence was reduced to a fine after intervention by the Duchess of Burgundy, allowing him to maintain his workshop.¹

The Werl Altarpiece, created in 1438, demonstrates that he remained active at the forefront even after legal troubles. He continued to be Tournai's leading painter until his death in 1444.¹