Jan Joest

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Portrait of a man, around 1505. 32 x 31 cm. Wood. Germanisches Nationalmuseum, Nürnberg

Jan Joest, also known as Jan Joest van Kalkar or Jan Joest van Calcar, (born between 1450 and 1460 - d. 1519) was a Dutch painter from either Kalkar or Wesel (both now in Germany), known for his religious paintings.

[edit] Biography

Jan Joest was practically unknown until 1874, when two men, Canon Wolff and Dr. Eisenmann, established his identity.

Not much of Joest's life is known beyond his paintings. He was the son of Heinrich Joest en Katharina Baegert. His greatest work, scenes of the life of Christ, were made between 1505 and 1508 on the high altar in St. Nicholai's Church in his hometown of Kalkar. Using documents found there, Canon Wolff discovered that, in 1518, Joest worked in Cologne for the Hackeneg family, before leaving, most likely for Italy, where he saw Genoa and Naples.

The high altar at St. Nicolai's Church, Kalkar

Joest then returned to the Netherlands, and settled in Haarlem, where he made a painting of St. Willibrord for St. Bavon's Church. The last edition of Van der Willingen's work of Haarlem painters mentions the burial of an artist there called "Jan Joosten" in 1519. Other works attributed to Joest are in Wesel and Rees, as well as the "Death of the Virgin" in Munich.

Two of Joest's apprentices were Bartholomäus or Barthel Bruyn (his brother-in-law) and Joos van Cleve.

[edit] Work

Joest has been compared to David and Memlinc, but he more properly belongs to the school of Scorel. One of the features of Joest's work is the exquisite transparency of his coloring and the subtle and delicate modelling of the faces.