Goes, Hugo van der (h

`gō vän dĕr g

s), d.1482, Flemish painter. Probably born in Ghent, he was a member of the painters' guild there in 1467 and became dean of the guild in 1474, a year before his semiretirement to a monastery near Brussels. Early works, such as The Fall of Man (c.1468; Vienna), recall earlier Flemish art, such as that of the van Eycks and Justus of Ghent. The Monforte Altarpiece (c.1472; Berlin) reveals a classical sonority in color and serene figures. Later works, such as the great Portinari Altarpiece (c.1476; Uffizi), begin to show the tension and the dissonances in color and spatial arrangement that characterize his last works. His Death of the Virgin (c.1480; Bruges) is remarkable for the staring melancholy of the apostles' faces. Hugo suffered an attack of madness c.1481, which resulted in his death the following year. The ducal court and Italian and local merchants in Flanders admired his exquisite technique, powers of observation, and representation of human character, to be seen in his portraits at the Metropolitan Museum and Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore.

Goes, Hugo van der

(born c. 1440—died 1482, Roode Kloster, near Brussels) Flemish painter. Nothing is known of his life before 1467, when he became a master in the painters' guild in Ghent. He received numerous commissions from the town of Ghent (processional banners, heraldic shields, etc.) through 1475. He was elected dean of the guild in 1474. The next year, at the height of his career, he entered a monastery near Brussels as a lay brother, though he continued to paint and travel. A mental breakdown in 1481 led to a suicide attempt, and he died the following year. His masterpiece and only documented work is a large triptych known as the Portinari Altarpiece (c. 1473–78); an outstanding early example of northern realism, it shows psychological insight and an emotional intensity unprecedented in Flemish art. A poignant and disturbing Death of the Virgin is also attributed to him.