Hals was a masterful group and character portrait painter. Painting the new wealthy elites of the Spanish Netherlands during the height of the Dutch Golden Age, Hals was arguably the most popular artist of his time. The Haarlem based artist was also extremely prolific painting hundreds of portraits, which today serve as a rich patchwork of Dutch society during the sixteenth century. Despite painting so many portraits, you will rarely find two Hal portraits the same, even if they depict the same sitter or have been commissioned by the same patron. Hals was a truly inventive artist using an evolving kaleidoscope of different postures, expressions and costumes to highlight each sitter’s unique character. Biographers note that Hals was a prolific drinker, who could have violent mood swings and changes of personality. In many respects this can be seen through his work, and in particular his most famous canvas The Laughing Cavalier (left) in which the unknown sitter elaborately dressed in fine silks, strikes a confident side on pose and gives the viewer a cheeky smirk as they wander through the gallery corridors.

Dou paintings are instantly recognisable for their small intimate candle-lit scenes that draw the viewer in like moths to the light. Dou was a great exponent of the Caravaggio style of illuminating facial features through cleverly composed sources of light. The intense light and shade (or chiaroscuro) give balance to the composition and helps frame the scene. In the self portrait (shown left) the artist depicts himself staring out at the viewer as if he is searching for his next subject to commit to canvas, with his paintbrush and palette in hand. The other rest on a large book suggesting the artist is well-read, with an actor’s mask and alcoholic spirit also visible, documenting the favourite passions in his life. Dou’s paintings are crammed full with objects of desire and symbols hiding secret meanings, inventions which make this talented and creative artist one of the true greats of the Dutch golden age.

Van Eyck represents an important figure in 15th century renaissance art and proves that the transition from the dark ages to the great works of Da Vinci, Raphael and Michelangelo wasn’t just solely an Italian phenomenon. The bright colours and fine execution of details in Van Eyck’s work of the early fifteenth century hold their own amongst his more celebrated Italian peers and indeed help constitute what is now often referred to as the Northern art renaissance, recognising the brilliance of artists north of the alps. Eyck's most revered and celebrated painting the Arnolfini Portrait (shown left) held in the National Gallery London is one of the finest paintings held by the gallery. It depicts Giovanni Arnolfini an Italian merchant marrying his pregnant other half. The painting therefore acts as contract and historical documentation for the act of marriage. The witness to the marriage is Van Eyck himself who is depicted in the mirror hanging on the far wall between the couple, with the inscription above reading “Van Eyck was here 1434” just in case there could be any doubt whatsoever. The painting is a true masterpiece. The first known oil painting, rather than the more translucent egg tempera that had prevailed up to that point and also one of the first known genre paintings, rather than that depicted a more formal religious or portrait scene.

Van Dyck is occasionally referred to by art historians as a British artist given his prominence as a court painter for Charles I, however he certainly would have seen himself as European artist, working in his native Antwerp as well as in Rome, Genoa and Palermo. His influence and talent for art transcended location and also period, appearing to be as popular today as when he was alive in the early half of the 17th century. Whilst working for the English court for Charles I he practiced primarily as a portrait artist, supplying the embattled King with powerful images of propaganda. Indeed whilst Van Dyck’s paintings weren’t enough to save the beheaded King, they did serve as a prominent documentation of a talented and inventive artist. Van Dyck’s works are still championed today for their bold choice of colour, confident brushstrokes and inventive compositions, all of which can be observed in the self portrait shown left.

Bruegel’s work always tells a story. You can often spot a Bruegel out amongst a packed gallery line-up, due to their character filled genre scenes depicting rural peasant life at its lively best. Village folk dance in the street in summer and gather to skate across a frozen lake in winter. There is a sense of both occasion and community with Brueghel’s work, they are largely positive, vibrant scenes showing the great diversity of folk life. Bruegel was also a great entrepreneur, ceasing on the emerging print trade to illustrate his works in books and single prints that came be widely distributed across the Netherlands and Low Countries. Father of the equally talented Pieter Bruegel the Younger, both were industrious artists, creating hundreds of popular genre paintings, such as the Netherlandish Proverbs shown left. This masterpiece cleverly depicts over a hundred popular sayings of the time, such as ‘swimming against the tide’ and ‘banging one’s head against a brick wall’. These proverbs along with the great canon of Bruegel's work, still resonant nearly five hundred years on.   

A Bosch painting seems to come from the deepest darkest psyche of human emotion. His fantastic landscapes are filled with figures committing sin, and being condemned to hell. Bosch’s early career was focussed on very traditional religious settings, painting several images of the crucifixion. However, his later and best work were more original, showing detailed scenes of ordinary people and their belief in God and fear of the devil. Bosch’s paintings are meant to act as a warning to all who view them, to be good or bad things will happen. His painting The Garden of Earthly Delights shown left is a triptych that depicts Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden on the left panel, sinful humans in the middle and the damnation of hell on the right. It's detailed execution and strong moral message makes it a recognisable as a true Bosch masterpiece.

The most recognisable Baroque painter, Rubens was a prolific artist, and his works now occupy wall space across the globe’s most notable art galleries. In the typical Baroque style his paintings often fuse religious characters and scenes with those from mythology and sheer flights of fancy. His paintings are expertly composed with the light source and colours of bright rich silk garments singing in harmony across often huge canvasses. He was also a great painter of naked flesh, painting Adam and Eve, naked bathers, thousands of cherubs and naked bathing beauties. Alternatively, to the pay bills Rubens also made friends with several rich and powerful patrons, painting several important historical portraits of key European royal and military figures of the early 17th century.

Van Gogh is probably most famous for cutting off his ear and for his still-life painting of sunflowers shown left. He was however, the one of the most prolific and talented artists of his generation. Never really appreciated during his lifetime, Van Gogh constantly struggled for recognition and funds to pursue his passion for painting. His younger brother Theo an art dealer passionately believed in his older brothers work, emotionally and financially supported Vincent. Whilst living in Southern France in the picturesque town in Arles, Van Gogh lived with the notable French artist Paul Gauguin. Whilst living in Arles Van Gogh painted some of his most recognisable landscapes, brilliantly capturing the colours and transient nature of the seasons. Despite his immense talent, Van Gogh fell into deep depression, he became an enraged alcoholic and frequented the local houses. His brother’s pending marriage, an argument with housemate Gauguin and a perverted gift to an estranged prostitute have all been cited for reasons why Van Gogh cut off his ear.

Vermeer was not a prolific painter, specialising in fairly mundane interior scenes depicting middle class life in his native Netherlands. He died in poverty and relative obscurity. Vermeer is however, perhaps one of the most talented painters to have graced this planet. The light sources, attention to detail, composition and fine execution are all superb. Vermeer was a great experimental painter for his time, using a range of pigments to create colours and tones that were unrivalled for his time. It is widely believed that Vermeer probably used a camera obscura to allow him to observe fine details from across a room in far greater focus than the human eye could manage alone. Indeed, if at all possible a Vermeer is best viewed right up close, due to the almost photographic quality of the final execution.

Rembrandt painting in the middle of the 17th century and the middle of what many consider the Dutch Golden Age of painting was the most influential and significant painter of Dutch and European art. He was a master of several forms of painting, be it portrait or landscape, historical or religious, Rembrandt had a huge ranging portfolio and reputation to boot. His genius came from his fine but naturalistic handling of faces and facial expressions. As an artist the skill of the painter is to extract the personality of the sitter onto the canvas and Rembrandt was a true master in this regard. Attributing art to Rembrandt is notoriously tricky given his wide ranging reputare, encouraging students to collaborate on his canvases and then copy the final version to practice from, and also his inconsistent signature, switching between initials and versions of his name. A magician with the paintbrush Rembrandt’s art remains today the highlight of any artistic trip lucky enough to contain one of his masterly works.