Felix, a landscape painter, was born in 1653 at Winterthur, canton of Zürich, Switzerland. After receiving lessons in his art from a painter at Nuremberg, he studied under Ermel, whose style he adopted. He then visited Italy for a short time, but finding that the climate did not agree with his health, he returned to Switzerland, and found free scope for the exercise of his genius in depicting the sublime scenery of his native country. He was remarkable for the ease and rapidity with which he executed his designs; and these qualities on one occasion were the means of extending his fame beyond the limits of his own country. Having arrived in the course of his travels at the Abbey of St Florian in Austria, he was requested by the abbot to give his advice about two large rooms which he wished to have painted in fresco; a work which the artist had employed seemed unable to perform. Meyer immediately began to describe the designs he would recommend; and as he went on, with a piece of charcoal in his hand, rapidly sketching the various objects of the landscape, he excited the admiration of the abbot to such a degree that he engaged him to paint the whole. Although the landscapes of this artist are deservedly famous, he was not so successful in painting figures; and in some of his pictures those parts have been done by Melchior, Roos, and Philip Rugendas. Meyer died in 1713.

Johann Heinrich, a German artist, was born in 1759 at Stäfa, on the Lake of Zürich, in Switzerland. He studied at Zürich under Flüssy for some time; and in 1784 went to Italy. At Rome he met Goethe, with whom he formed a friendship so close, that the artist generally went by the name of "Goethe-Meyer." He also visited Naples, Venice, and other places, and returned to Switzerland in 1787. In 1792 he went to Goethe at Weimar, where he was made professor in the School of Design; and in 1795 he visited Italy again, and lived in Naples and Florence till 1797, when he returned through Switzerland to Weimar. Here he lived for many years in close and familiar intercourse with Goethe, whom he assisted in many of his works on art. Meyer was appointed in 1807 director of the academy of Weimar; and died at Jena in 1832. His paintings are few. The most important are an allegorical frieze in the palace of Weimar, and some drawings and water-colour sketches of ancient remains and the works of the old masters. He is chiefly famous as a writer on art, and his principal work is entitled Geschichte der Bildenden Künste bei den Griechen, Dresden, 2 vols., 1824. A third and a posthumous volume, in continuation of the history of art, especially in Rome, was edited by Reimer, and published at Dresden in 1836. He also edited the works of Winckelmann in 8 volumes.

MERTZ, Jacques, a historian, was born in 1491 at Vleteren, near Baileul in Flanders. After receiving his education at Paris he entered the church, and subsequently established a school at Ypres, by which he acquired considerable renown, and which he afterwards removed to Bruges when appointed to the church of St. Donatien there. This school he finally gave up when he became curate of Blankenburg, where he died in 1552. His principal works are,—Flandricarum Rerum Decas, Bruges, 1531; and Annales Rerum Flandricarum, Antwerp, 1561.