Johann Sadeler I - Portret van Bartholomeus Spranger

The roots of the Flemish school are usually placed in Dijon, the capital of the dukes of Burgundy where Philip the Bold (reigned 1363–1404) established a tradition of art patronage. Philip the Good (reigned 1419–67) moved the Burgundian capital to Brugge (Bruges). The largest county in the Southern Netherlands was Flanders and the term Flanders is often used to refer to the whole of the Southern Netherlands. Flanders produced many famous artists of Northern Europe. Arts flourished in the County of Flanders and neighboring Brabant, Hainaut, Picardy, Artois, and Tournaisis, from the early 15th century until the 17th century. In the 15th century and up to 1520 Flaundry was a part of Early Netherlandish art with the center in Antwerp. It gradually became distinct from the art of the rest of the Low Countries, especially the modern Netherlands by the end of the 16th century, when the north and the south Netherlands were politically separated. During the last quarter of the 16th century, political unrest between the northern and southern parts of the Netherlands brought a decline in Flemish art. Many Flemish artists left the Southern Netherlands for Rome, Germany, or the Dutch Republic. After Twelve Year Truce, Flemish art revived.

Bartholomeus Spranger was a Flemish painter, draughtsman and etcher who lived and worked in Antwerp, Prague and Vienna. He was born in Antwerp in 1546 and trained with the painter Jan Mandijn. Spranger became master of the Antwerp Guild of St. Luke in 1565. In 1568 Spranger left Antwerp and travelled to Italy, where he studied the works of Michelangelo, Raphael and Titian. He also spent some time in Rome working for Cardinal Alessandro Farnese. In 1575 Spranger moved to Prague, where he worked as a court painter for Emperor Rudolf II. He became known for his highly refined and elegant style, influenced by Mannerism and the Italian Renaissance. Spranger's paintings often depicted mythological and allegorical subjects, and his figures were characterised by elongated proportions and graceful poses. Spranger remained in Prague until 1591, when he moved to Vienna to work for Emperor Rudolf's successor, Emperor Matthias. He died in Vienna in 1611. Spranger's work had a significant influence on the development of Baroque art in Central Europe. His paintings were highly sought after by collectors and patrons, and he was widely regarded as one of the most important artists of his time.

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