Detail of the altar. The Last Supper. Central part of the Altar of the Holy Communion (1464 1467). Leuven, St. Peter’s Church.
Dirk Bouts (Dutch: Dirk Bouts, IPA: [bʌu̯ts]; Dierick, Thierry Bouts; c. 1415, Haarlem – 6 May 1475, Leuven) was a Dutch painter.
The Last Supper. Central part of the Altar of the Holy Communion (1464 1467). Leuven, St. Peter’s Church. Oil on wood. 180 × 150 cm
The influence of Rogier van der Weyden is particularly evident in the work of Dirk Bouts, which is why some researchers suggest that Dirk was his student. In 1448, he married a girl from a wealthy family, Catharina van de Brugghen from Leuven, and moved there. Dirk had four children, one of whom, Dirk Bouts the Younger, also became famous as an artist. According to documents from that time, Bouts was a very wealthy resident of Leuven and received the title of city painter in 1468.
Triptych The Pearl of Brabant (1467 1468). Alte Pinakothek.
Dirck Bouts probably studied in Holland, so his style retained the features of the Dutch school even during the years of the master’s work in Flanders. Around 1457 he moved to Louvain. One of Bouts’ most significant works is the altarpiece The Sacrament of the Eucharist (1464-1467) depicting the Last Supper and scenes symbolically associated with this composition, currently located in the Church of St. Peter in Louvain. In 1468, Bouts received an order to create a series of paintings for the town hall of Louvain, dedicated to the theme of justice; from this series, he managed to paint only the diptych Justice of Otto III, which is in the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Brussels. Bouts’ works are characterized by the finest elaboration of details, careful chiaroscuro modeling of form.
Saint Christopher, side panel of the triptych The Pearl of Brabant, 1467–68. Alte Pinakothek.
Bouts died in Louvain in 1475.
Meeting of Abraham and Melchizedek. Left wing of the Altar of the Holy Sacrament. 1464 1467. Leuven, St. Peter’s Church.Altar of St. Erasmus. Leuven, St. Peter’s Cathedral.Portrait of a man, circa 1460 1470. New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art.Lamentation, circa 1460.Head of St. John the Baptist, c. 1460, National Museum, Warsaw.The Path to Paradise or the Ascent of the Chosen, Palais des Beaux Arts de Lille.Triptych of the Life of the Virgin, circa 1445, Prado Museum.The Trial by Fire. One of two paintings The Justice of Emperor Otto III, 1468 1475, Brussels, Royal Museum of Fine Arts.Тhe left panel of the Judgment of Brass.Martyrdom of St. Hippolytus, 1470 (Museum der Erlöserkathedrale, Brügge).Self portrait as Saint Luke.The right wing of The Pearl of Brabant Saint Christopher.The Meeting of Abraham and Melchizedek.Saint John the Evangelist on Patmos.The Feast of the Passover from the Winged altar in St. Peter in Leuven.The Gathering of the Manna.The Last Supper from the Winged Altarpiece in St. Peter in Leuven.Justice of the Emperor Otto The Ordeal by Fire.
