J. L. A. T. Géricault(French: 1791-1824).
Jean Louis André Théodore Géricault, animal and historical painter, was a precursor of the revolt of the Romanticists against the Classicists, which was carried further by Delacroix (see 2289). His most famous picture, "The Raft of the Medusa" (Louvre), was exhibited at the Salon in 1819 and excited much controversy. He was the son of a prosperous advocate; and as a young man became a member of the Jockey Club, and lived the life of thejeunesse dorée. He had some instruction in art from Charles Vernet and Guérin, but his real master was Rubens in the Louvre. In 1816 he went to Italy. After 1819 he visited England, where he practised the then new art of lithography. His picture of "The Derby at Epsom" (1821) is in the Louvre.
Jean Louis André Théodore Géricault, animal and historical painter, was a precursor of the revolt of the Romanticists against the Classicists, which was carried further by Delacroix (see 2289). His most famous picture, "The Raft of the Medusa" (Louvre), was exhibited at the Salon in 1819 and excited much controversy. He was the son of a prosperous advocate; and as a young man became a member of the Jockey Club, and lived the life of thejeunesse dorée. He had some instruction in art from Charles Vernet and Guérin, but his real master was Rubens in the Louvre. In 1816 he went to Italy. After 1819 he visited England, where he practised the then new art of lithography. His picture of "The Derby at Epsom" (1821) is in the Louvre.
P. E. Théodore Rousseau(French: 1812-1867).
Rousseau, one of the founders of the modern school of landscape in France, had to fight his way to fame through many difficulties and much neglect. The toast of Diaz, "à notre maître oublié," has been already recorded (p. 691). For thirteen years (1835-1848) his pictures were rejected from the Salon; and official honours came to him tardily. He had his revenge in the Exhibition of 1855, when his rejected pictures "came back as victorious exiles," and again in that of 1867, when he was chosen president of the jury. But he was of a sensitive and jealous disposition; he was estranged from his best friend, Dupré, and chagrin at being passed over for promotion in the Legion of Honour in 1867 is said to have hastened his death. A pleasanter episode in his life is his generous and timely help to Millet. The heads of the two artists are carved together on his tombstone in the cemetery of Chailly, near Barbizon. He was born in Paris, the son of a merchant-tailor. He studied painting under Rémond and Guillon Lethière, and first exhibited at the Salon in 1831. His pictures in successive years were loudly trumpeted by Thoré as those of an innovator, and for that reason perhaps excited the more hostility among the old school. His favourite ground was the forest of Fontainebleau, and he made his home at Barbizon, studying every aspect of nature with intense application. "It is a good composition," he wrote, "when the objects represented are not there solely as they are, but when they contain under a natural appearance the sentiments which they have stirred in our souls. If we contest that the trees have power of thought, at any rate we may allow that they can make us think; and in return for all the modesty of which they make use to elevate our thoughts, we owe them, as recompense, not arrogant freedom or pedantic and classic style, but the sincerity of a grateful attention in the reproduction of their being." There is a good example of his forest-pictures in the Wallace Collection.
Rousseau, one of the founders of the modern school of landscape in France, had to fight his way to fame through many difficulties and much neglect. The toast of Diaz, "à notre maître oublié," has been already recorded (p. 691). For thirteen years (1835-1848) his pictures were rejected from the Salon; and official honours came to him tardily. He had his revenge in the Exhibition of 1855, when his rejected pictures "came back as victorious exiles," and again in that of 1867, when he was chosen president of the jury. But he was of a sensitive and jealous disposition; he was estranged from his best friend, Dupré, and chagrin at being passed over for promotion in the Legion of Honour in 1867 is said to have hastened his death. A pleasanter episode in his life is his generous and timely help to Millet. The heads of the two artists are carved together on his tombstone in the cemetery of Chailly, near Barbizon. He was born in Paris, the son of a merchant-tailor. He studied painting under Rémond and Guillon Lethière, and first exhibited at the Salon in 1831. His pictures in successive years were loudly trumpeted by Thoré as those of an innovator, and for that reason perhaps excited the more hostility among the old school. His favourite ground was the forest of Fontainebleau, and he made his home at Barbizon, studying every aspect of nature with intense application. "It is a good composition," he wrote, "when the objects represented are not there solely as they are, but when they contain under a natural appearance the sentiments which they have stirred in our souls. If we contest that the trees have power of thought, at any rate we may allow that they can make us think; and in return for all the modesty of which they make use to elevate our thoughts, we owe them, as recompense, not arrogant freedom or pedantic and classic style, but the sincerity of a grateful attention in the reproduction of their being." There is a good example of his forest-pictures in the Wallace Collection.
Rousseau was the most various of the landscape painters of his time. In the present picture we see him in a peaceful mood; another picture (2635) is of a stormy sky.
Hans Holbein(German: 1497-1543).See 1314.
Amongst Holbein's duties as painter to Henry VIII. was that of taking portraits of the ladies whom he proposed in turn to wed. After the death of Jane Seymour, the first favourite was the lady before us, "the demure half-smile notyet faded from her eyes"—Christina, daughter of Christian II. of Denmark, niece of the Emperor Charles V., and widow of the Duke of Milan. Reasons of state suggested her marriage to Henry VIII., and Holbein was sent to Brussels, where the Duchess was residing. Our portrait was painted a few years later than "The Ambassadors," from a sketch made at Brussels on March 12, 1538. The circumstances are entertainingly told in the letters of the English envoy, John Hutton, to Thomas Cromwell. On the 10th August Hutton had sent off a portrait by another artist to Henry VIII., that he might judge of the appearance of the young Duchess before making her a proposal of marriage. The next evening "Mr. Haunce" (i.e.Hans Holbein) arrived in company of a servant of the king, whereupon Hutton sent off an express-courier to fetch back the picture he had already despatched, "for that in my opinion," he said, "it was not so perfect as the case required, neither as the said Mr. Haunce could make it." "The next day following at one of the clock in the afternoon, the said Lord Benedick came for Mr. Haunce, who, having but three hours' space, both showed himself to be master of that science, for it is very perfect; the other is but slobbered in comparison to it, as, by the sight of both, your Lordships shall well perceive."
The original—the study, sketch, or miniature, the result of three hours' hard work—has disappeared; but the picture which the master made from it after he came home is now before us. The portrait, it would seem, did not make the king less anxious for the match—which, however, was broken off, it will be remembered, after long negotiations, by the hostility of the emperor. The duchess, in spite of her tender years, seems—and the picture does not belie the supposition—to have had a character of her own. The story of her reply, "that she had but one head, but that if she had two, one should be at the service of his majesty," is, indeed, now discredited; but her actual answer, "You know I am the Emperor's poor servant and must follow his pleasure," was, in the light of subsequent events, equally to the point. The English envoy specially reported "her honest countenance and the few words she wisely spoke."
The beautiful portrait before us was retained by Henry VIII., and through the Lumley, Pembroke, and Arundel Collections it passed into that of the Dukes of Norfolk. "Whether as a pictorial record of an interesting chapter of our history, or asan example of the presentment of a fresh and winning young personality by the most masterful and at the same time most reserved and refined methods of the painter's craft, the picture counts among the very noblest of the art treasures still left in England. That it is so left is mainly due to the splendid generosity of a small group of private donors, the chief of whom elude our public thanks by choosing firmly to remain anonymous. At the eleventh hour, when the picture was on the very point of leaving our shores to enrich a private gallery in America, these benefactors came forward and enabled the Committee of the National Art-Collections' Fund to present the masterpiece to the nation." The price paid was £72,000. (Report of the National Art-Collections' Fund, 1909; Froude'sHistory of England, ch. xv.) The picture had for many years been lent to the National Gallery by the Duke of Norfolk.[261]
Philippe Rousseau(French: 1816-1887).
Born in Paris; first exhibited at the Salon in 1834, "A View in Normandy"; afterwards made his reputation, and attained great popularity as a painter of still-life.
Born in Paris; first exhibited at the Salon in 1834, "A View in Normandy"; afterwards made his reputation, and attained great popularity as a painter of still-life.
Benvenuto da Siena(Sienese: 1436-1518).
This painter is better seen in the larger picture, No. 909.
Fiorenzo di Lorenzo(Umbrian: 1440-1521).
L'Ingegno(Umbrian: painted 1484-1511).See 1220.
The donor and his wife kneel in adoration before the Virgin and Child enthroned between St. Dominic and St. Catherine of Siena. The picture was formerly in Lord Dudley's collection.
Cesare da Sesto(Lombard: 1477-1523).
Leonardo da Vinci was "very successfully installed," says Vasari, "by Cesare da Sesto, who was also a Milanese." Cesare was born at Sesto Calende on the Lago Maggiore, and is supposed to have worked under Leonardo in Milan, 1507-1512. At Rome he was, according to Lomazzo, an intimate friend of Raphael.
Leonardo da Vinci was "very successfully installed," says Vasari, "by Cesare da Sesto, who was also a Milanese." Cesare was born at Sesto Calende on the Lago Maggiore, and is supposed to have worked under Leonardo in Milan, 1507-1512. At Rome he was, according to Lomazzo, an intimate friend of Raphael.
The daughter of Herodias, with a face of haunting beauty, points to a vase, over which the executioner holds the head of John the Baptist. The table on which it rests has sphinxes for supports. This picture is a replica with variations of the one by Cesare in the Vienna Gallery, and is said to have come from the Barberini Palace in 1799.
Ercole Roberti de' Grandi(Ferrarese: 1450-1496).See 1127.
This picture was No. 14 at the Burlington Fine Arts Club, 1894, where it was ascribed to Lorenzo Costa. "In type, the woman resembles one of the daughters of Bentivoglio II., and it may be that this group of musicians contains family portraits of the reigning house of the Bentivogli at Bologna."
Francia(Bolognese: 1450-1517).See 180.
This picture, an early work by Francia, is an admirable example of the artist as a portrait-painter. It is "a marvel of fine condition, and betrays the technique of the goldsmith seeking for the quality of enamel. Bianchini was a Bolognesesenator, collector, poet, and friend of Francia." Upon a "Holy Family" in the Berlin Museum is inscribed—
Bartholomei sumptu Bianchini maxima matrumHic vivit manibus, Francia, picta tuis.
Our portrait, from the collection of the Princesse de Sagan, was No. 23 at the Burlington Fine Arts Club, 1894.
Luca Signorelli(Cortona: 1441-1523).See 1128.
Domenico Ghirlandajo(Florentine: 1449-1494).See 1230.
The portrait of the man in his red-coloured robe and black skull-cap is set against a landscape background. Many other examples of a like treatment will have been noticed by the visitor; as, for instance, in the fine portrait by Ridolfo Ghirlandajo (2491). And it is interesting to observe how long this convention survived, though with variations. The advantage of introducing an object of locally dark colour behind the head was perceived, and a background of curtain or other drapery was used; but a piece of it was drawn back, so as still to display landscape. See,e.g., Basaiti's portrait (2498). Or, again, a window was opened with the same purpose. See,e.g., Piombo's portrait of a Venetian lady as Salome (2493) and Cariani's of a Venetian magnate (2494). A corresponding development may be traced in Madonna pictures. Often the Virgin and Child are placed in an open landscape, as in the beautiful "Madonna of the Meadow" (599). When they are brought indoors a curtain is drawn back (2503), or a window opened—e.g.2496, 2609, and (Flemish School) 2595.
Lorenzo di Credi(Florentine: 1459-1537).See 593.
The inscription records that the lady was the wife of Francis, Duke of Gaeta. This portrait was formerly ascribed to D. Ghirlandajo.
Ridolfo Ghirlandajo(Florentine: 1483-1561).See 1143.
This fine portrait is of "a very learned man," and an intimate friend of Lorenzo di Credi, who also, as Vasari relates, painted him. The background is studied from that in Leonardo's "Mona Lisa."
Jacopo del Sellaio(Florentine: 1442-1493).
This painter is mentioned by Vasari as among the pupils of Fra Filippo Lippi. He worked in the manner of Botticelli, and No. 916 in our gallery is now ascribed to him.
This painter is mentioned by Vasari as among the pupils of Fra Filippo Lippi. He worked in the manner of Botticelli, and No. 916 in our gallery is now ascribed to him.
Sebastiano del Piombo(Venetian: 1485-1547).See 1.
Cariani(Bergamese: about 1480-1541).See 1203.
A vigorously-painted portrait of a personage of some importance or self-importance; perhaps, as the official catalogue suggests, "the principal citizen of some provincial town." His robe is of gold brocade, and he handles his gold chain. It may be a view of his town that is shown through the open window.
Cariani(Bergamese: about 1480-1541).See 1203.
This fine picture, known asLa Vierge aux Lauriersfrom its background of a laurel-bush (and roses), was formerly in the Leuchtenberg Collection at St. Petersburg, where it was ascribed to Giorgione.
Beltraffio(Lombard: 1467-1516).See 728.
School of Botticelli(Florentine: 1447-1510).See 1034.
Marco Basaiti(Venetian: painted 1500-1521).See 281.
Signed on the parapet. The young Venetians, it will be noticed, wore their hair long, and carried great weights of it at the sides of their faces: compare,e.g., No. 1121 (Catena), 2509 (Vivarini).
Marco Basaiti(Venetian: painted 1500-1521).
This picture, if No. 599 be indeed by the same hand, must be an early work; the face and figure, both of mother and of child, are ugly and ungainly. The picture is signed in the left corner.
Andrea Previtali(Bergamese: about 1480-1528).See 695.
Previtali(Bergamese: about 1480-1528).See 695.
Inscribed on the parapet "Andreas Privitalus, p." and dated 1518.
Bastiano Mainardi(Tuscan: died 1513).
This painter was the pupil, favourite assistant, and brother-in-law of Domenico Ghirlandajo (see 1230). He was born at San Gimignano, in the churches of which place pictures by him are to be seen.
This painter was the pupil, favourite assistant, and brother-in-law of Domenico Ghirlandajo (see 1230). He was born at San Gimignano, in the churches of which place pictures by him are to be seen.
The beautiful painting of jewellery, and the fine patterns, should not escape notice.
Antonio da Solario(Venetian: 15th-16th century).
This beautiful picture is signed on a cartellino "Antonius da Solario V"(enetus).
Cesare da Sesto(Milanese: 1477-1523).See 2485.
Cima da Conegliano(Venetian: 1460-1518).See 300.
This little picture, of David (carrying the head of Goliath) walking with Jonathan, was formerly in the Modici collection at Naples.
Cima(Venetian: 1460-1518).
Formerly in the Patrizi collection at Rome.
Bartolommeo Veneziano(painted 1505-1530).See 287.
From the Castellani collection.
Unknown(Florentine School: 15th century).
Two charming angels, of whom one is garlanded with roses, hold the child before the Virgin. The scene is laid within the walls of the mystical garden ("a garden inclosed is my sister, my spouse"), behind which rise "Noah's ark" trees.
Alvise Vivarini(Venetian: painted 1461-1503).See 1872.
"The portrait of a boy of fifteen or sixteen, a little defiant or shy, yet frank in look, with a blondzazzera(head of hair) cropped short over the eyebrows, wearing a coat of pale turquoise blue. Formerly in the Duchatel collection at Paris, where it was seen by Messrs. Crowe and Cavalcaselle." By them ascribed to Andrea da Solario (see 734); formerly, to Antonello (see 673); now, on the authority of Mr. Berenson, to Alvise: see Berenson'sLorenzo Lotto, pp. 110-1.
Unknown(Umbrian School: 15th century).
Possibly a portrait of the young Raphael.
Giulio Campi(Cremona: 1502-1572).
A master at the School of Cremona, who worked in the great church there with Boccaccino (see 806). There are also works by him at Mantua, where he is said to have studied under Giulio Romano.
A master at the School of Cremona, who worked in the great church there with Boccaccino (see 806). There are also works by him at Mantua, where he is said to have studied under Giulio Romano.
Correggio(Parmese: 1494-1534).See 10.
"The art of Correggio with its deep sense of beauty and its tender sensibility was peculiarly fitted," says Signor Ricci, "to give life and grace to the figure of the Magdalen. He introduced it in many of his large compositions, and made it the subject of several separate studies, but not one of the latter has survived." If this be an authentic work, the statement requires correction; but the head of the Magdalen is not convincingly Correggiesque.
Tiepolo(Venetian: 1692-1769).See 1192.
Canaletto(Venetian: 1697-1768).See 127.
No. 2514 shows the Grand Canal, with the church of the Scalzi; No. 2515, the square of St. Mark's, seen through an archway; No. 2516, the Colonnade of the Procuratie Nuove. The white spots with which the figures are picked out are not a happy instance of Canaletto's workmanship.
Guardi(Venetian: 1712-1793).See 210.
No. 2517, "Buildings and Figures"; 2518, "Gothic Archway and Figures"; 2519, "Venetian Courtyard"; 2520,"Quay-side with Warehouses"; 2521, "Ruins"; 2522, "Treasure-Seekers"; 2523, "View through an Archway."
Guardi(Venetian: 1712-1793).See 210.
It was at Mestre that travellers in old days took gondola for Venice, and the tower was a familiar landmark. Ruskin mentions it in his description of the approach to Venice (Stones, vol. i. last chapter).
Guardi(Venetian: 1712-1793).
A good example of the deep, rich colour which Guardi gives to his Venetian subjects: see under 210.
Unknown(Spanish: 17th century).
This unfinished picture (once in the collection of the Earl of Clare) has been ascribed to Pedro Nuñez de Villavicencio (1630-1700). He was a Knight of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, a distinguished amateur-painter and a favourite pupil of Murillo, who died in his arms.
This unfinished picture (once in the collection of the Earl of Clare) has been ascribed to Pedro Nuñez de Villavicencio (1630-1700). He was a Knight of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, a distinguished amateur-painter and a favourite pupil of Murillo, who died in his arms.
Juan Giacchinetti Gonzalez(Spanish: 1630-1696).
A portrait-painter, who was a great admirer of Titian and a diligent copyist of his works. He was the son of a Burgundian jeweller settled at Madrid, and he was born in that city. He removed to Italy, where he was called, from his skill in portraiture,Il Borgognone dalle teste(the Burgundian of the heads). He practised his art in Brescia and Bergamo, and died in the latter city.
A portrait-painter, who was a great admirer of Titian and a diligent copyist of his works. He was the son of a Burgundian jeweller settled at Madrid, and he was born in that city. He removed to Italy, where he was called, from his skill in portraiture,Il Borgognone dalle teste(the Burgundian of the heads). He practised his art in Brescia and Bergamo, and died in the latter city.
Frans Hals(Dutch: 1580-1666).See 1021.
An excellent example of the "irresistible verve" which Hals brings to his portraits, especially to those of men: see under 1021. To what is there said, it may be interesting to addthe opinion of Sir Joshua Reynolds. "In the work of Frank Hals, the portrait-painter may observe the composition of a face, the features well put together, as the painters express it; from whence proceeds that strong-marked character of individual nature, which is so remarkable in his portraits, and is not found in an equal degree in any other painter. If he had joined to this most difficult part of the art, a patience in finishing what he had so correctly planned, he might justly have claimed the place which Vandyck, all things considered, so justly holds as the first of portrait-painters" (Sixth Discourse).
Frans Hals(Dutch: 1580-1666).See 1021.
Cornelis Janssens(Dutch: 1594-1664).See 1320.
Sir Joshua Reynolds has some interesting remarks on the technique of Janssens. "There is a kind of finishing," he says, "which may safely be condemned, as it seems to counteract its own purpose; that is, when the artist, to avoid that hardness which proceeds from the outline cutting against the ground, softens and blends the colours to excess: this is what the ignorant call high finishing, but which tends to destroy the brilliancy of colour, and the true effect of representation; which consists very much in preserving the same proportion of sharpness and bluntness that is found in natural objects. This extreme softening, instead of producing the effect of softness, gives the appearance of ivory, or some other hard substance, highly polished. The portraits of Cornelius Janssen appear to have this defect, and consequently want that suppleness which is the characteristic of flesh; whereas, in the works of Vandyck, we find that true mixture of softness and hardness perfectly observed" (Eleventh Discourse).
Pieter Saenredam(Dutch: 1597-1665).See 1896.
In No. 1451 (by Berck-Heyde) we see the interior of the same church; in the present picture, no public service is goingon. In each case a dog is a church-goer; here in front of the pew on the left, where a man kneels down in prayer, a dog kneels up.
Jan Wynants(Dutch: about 1615-1679).See 883.
Aart van der Neer(Dutch: 1603-1677).See 152.
Eglon Hendrik van der Neer(Dutch: 1635-1703).
Eglon was the pupil of his father, the landscape-painter, Aart van der Neer; but the son's taste took the direction rather of interiors and portraits. He also painted some Biblical subjects.
Eglon was the pupil of his father, the landscape-painter, Aart van der Neer; but the son's taste took the direction rather of interiors and portraits. He also painted some Biblical subjects.
A costume piece: note the richly embroidered white satin dress of Judith.
Aart van der Neer(Dutch: 1603-1677).See 152.
Rembrandt(Dutch: 1606-1669).See 43.
A characteristically "Rembrandtesque" effect, the light concentrated on the principal figure.
Rembrandt(Dutch: 1606-1669).See 43.
This fine portrait-study was formerly in the collection of the Duke of Sutherland.
Adrian van Ostade(Dutch: 1610-1685).See 846.
Peasants listening to a man playing the hurdy-gurdy. Signed in the left foreground "A. V. Ostade, 1653." Formerly in the collection of Lord Dudley (at whose sale in 1892 it fetched £1470).
Adrian van Ostade(Dutch: 1610-1685).See 846.
Isaac van Ostade(Dutch: 1621-1649).See 847.
Cuyp(Dutch: 1620-1691).See 53.
Cuyp(Dutch: 1620-1691).See 53.
Shown at the Manchester Art Treasures Exhibition in 1857.
Cuyp(Dutch: 1620-1691).See 53.
Quiryn Brekelenham(Dutch: 1625-1668).See 1329.
Pieter van den Bosch(Dutch: 1613-1660).
A painter of Amsterdam. The year of his death is not known; 1660 is the date of the last mention of him in extant documents. A deed of 1645 records that the painter bound himself, at a yearly fee of 1200 gulden, to work exclusively for a certain picture-dealer, from 7 a.m. till dusk, daily, Sundays and Festivals alone excepted.
A painter of Amsterdam. The year of his death is not known; 1660 is the date of the last mention of him in extant documents. A deed of 1645 records that the painter bound himself, at a yearly fee of 1200 gulden, to work exclusively for a certain picture-dealer, from 7 a.m. till dusk, daily, Sundays and Festivals alone excepted.
Pieter de Hooch(Dutch: 1630-about 1677).See 794.
Formerly in the collections of Pierre de Grand Pré (Paris) and the Earl of Shaftesbury.
Jacob Ochtervelt(Dutch: died before 1710).See 2143.
Wouwerman(Dutch: 1619-1668).See 878.
Jan Steen(Dutch: 1626-1679).See 856.
Jan Steen(Dutch: 1626-1679).See 856.
Steen, though he loved scenes of rollicking conviviality and was fond of sly humour, by no means confined himself to such moods. His brush traced every episode of family life, and this little piece is as pretty as one of the "Graces for Children" in Herrick'sNoble Numbers:—
What God gives, and what we take,'Tis a gift for Christ his sake;Be the meal of Beans and Pease,God be thanked for those and these.
What God gives, and what we take,'Tis a gift for Christ his sake;Be the meal of Beans and Pease,God be thanked for those and these.
This picture was formerly in the Leuchtenberg Collection at St. Petersburg.
Jan Steen(Dutch: 1626-1679).See 856.
Ruysdael(Dutch: 1628-1682).See 627.
A beautiful example of the master, who has signed it in full in the centre of the foreground. It will be noticed that the point of view is much the same, and that the effect of sunlight in the middle distance is the same, as in the large picture, No. 990. One may ask the question which Fromentin puts of a like instance: "The two landscapes are, the one on a large scale, the other on a small, a repetition of the same subject. Is the little canvas the study which served as text for the large? Did Ruysdael design, or did he paint from nature? Was he inspired, or did he copy directly? That is his secret. In any case the two works are charming."
Ruysdael(Dutch: 1628-1682).See 627.
This is one of the best known of Ruysdael's small pictures, much prized for its luminous quality: its pedigree has been traced through famous collections for over 100 years. In the Bredel sale (1875) it fetched £2310; in the Dudley sale (1892), £1470. It is No. 786 in vol. iv. (1912) of Smith'sCatalogue Raisonné.
Ruysdael(Dutch: 1628-1682).See 627.
Jan Vermeer(Dutch: 1632-1675).See 1383.
No. 15 at the Burlington Fine Arts Club, 1900, where it was thus described: "A lady seated on the right facing to left; she wears a yellow skirt with blue overdress, the sleeves trimmed with lace, and turns her face to the spectator as she plays. Her clavichord stands upon a marble table and is open, showing a landscape painted inside the cover; a viol da gamba and bow are in the left-hand bottom corner, and a blue and yellow curtain above; a picture with three figures hangs on the wall behind. Signed to the right of the lady's head, J V Meer."
Adrian Brouwer(Dutch-Flemish: 1605-1638).
Brouwer, Flemish by birth, Dutch by adoption, rivalled his contemporary, the younger Teniers, as a genre painter. His realism is as humorous as it is vigorous. His pictures, says M. Havard, "are marvels of arrangement and colouring. They are sober in conception, and exhibit exquisite modelling, remarkable softness, and light and shade full of transparency and truthfulness; qualities which, during his lifetime, obtained for Brouwer the admiration of his brother-artists and the enthusiasm of Rubens," who, as is known from extant documents, possessed several of his pictures. His portrait was painted by Van Dyck to be placed in a collection of the most celebrated portrait-painters.Brouwer led an exciting life, and has been the subject of several biographies, which have alternately covered him with scandal and whitewashed him. Documents unearthed during recent years support the earlier accounts, which represent this painter of topers as a jovial, reckless, dissipated Bohemian; though his epitaph may yet have partly told truth in describing him as "a man of great mind, who rejected every splendour of the world, and who despised gain and riches." The documents are set out by Wurzbach (Niederländisches Künstler-Lexicon, 1906). Taking all the evidence together, we may picture Brouwer as a genial fellow, fond of adventure, slow in setting to work, quick in spending, inclined to libertinism and drink, constantly running into debt, a sworn foe of shams and parade, fond of his joke, a lover of poetry, and popular among all who knew him. Oneof the stories told of him well illustrates his mocking contempt of fashionable vanities. At Amsterdam he had bought himself some coarse linen, which he had made up into a fashionable suit and then painted with a flowered pattern. Brouwer's costume became the talk of the town, and shops were ransacked to furnish copies of it; till one night at the theatre, the artist jumped on to the stage, wiped off his pattern with a wet cloth, and laughed at his audience. He was born at Oudenarde, ran away from home, had exciting adventures on the way, and turned up in Amsterdam and Haarlem. He is said to have entered the studio of Frans Hals, and to have been very badly treated there. He is known to have been an artist of repute, moving also in literary circles, in Amsterdam and Haarlem, 1625-27. He is next heard of at Antwerp, where in 1631-32 he was admitted into the Painters' Guild. Three years later he became a member of the section of the Guild for exercising rhetoric. He was cast into the state prison, probably on suspicion of espionage; and during the seven months of his incarceration, succeeded in running up new debts to the extent of £400—a feat which may be explained by the fact that the prison amenities included an excellent wine-tavern. He died—of his dissipations, according to some, but quite as probably of the plague—and was buried in the cemetery, and afterwards in the Convent Church of the Carmelites. His pictures are rare. The Wallace Collection, the Victoria and Albert Museum (Ionides Collection), and the Dulwich Gallery have each one good example. It has been suggested that the Landscape, No. 72 in our Gallery, hitherto attributed to Rembrandt, is by Brouwer.
Brouwer, Flemish by birth, Dutch by adoption, rivalled his contemporary, the younger Teniers, as a genre painter. His realism is as humorous as it is vigorous. His pictures, says M. Havard, "are marvels of arrangement and colouring. They are sober in conception, and exhibit exquisite modelling, remarkable softness, and light and shade full of transparency and truthfulness; qualities which, during his lifetime, obtained for Brouwer the admiration of his brother-artists and the enthusiasm of Rubens," who, as is known from extant documents, possessed several of his pictures. His portrait was painted by Van Dyck to be placed in a collection of the most celebrated portrait-painters.
Brouwer led an exciting life, and has been the subject of several biographies, which have alternately covered him with scandal and whitewashed him. Documents unearthed during recent years support the earlier accounts, which represent this painter of topers as a jovial, reckless, dissipated Bohemian; though his epitaph may yet have partly told truth in describing him as "a man of great mind, who rejected every splendour of the world, and who despised gain and riches." The documents are set out by Wurzbach (Niederländisches Künstler-Lexicon, 1906). Taking all the evidence together, we may picture Brouwer as a genial fellow, fond of adventure, slow in setting to work, quick in spending, inclined to libertinism and drink, constantly running into debt, a sworn foe of shams and parade, fond of his joke, a lover of poetry, and popular among all who knew him. Oneof the stories told of him well illustrates his mocking contempt of fashionable vanities. At Amsterdam he had bought himself some coarse linen, which he had made up into a fashionable suit and then painted with a flowered pattern. Brouwer's costume became the talk of the town, and shops were ransacked to furnish copies of it; till one night at the theatre, the artist jumped on to the stage, wiped off his pattern with a wet cloth, and laughed at his audience. He was born at Oudenarde, ran away from home, had exciting adventures on the way, and turned up in Amsterdam and Haarlem. He is said to have entered the studio of Frans Hals, and to have been very badly treated there. He is known to have been an artist of repute, moving also in literary circles, in Amsterdam and Haarlem, 1625-27. He is next heard of at Antwerp, where in 1631-32 he was admitted into the Painters' Guild. Three years later he became a member of the section of the Guild for exercising rhetoric. He was cast into the state prison, probably on suspicion of espionage; and during the seven months of his incarceration, succeeded in running up new debts to the extent of £400—a feat which may be explained by the fact that the prison amenities included an excellent wine-tavern. He died—of his dissipations, according to some, but quite as probably of the plague—and was buried in the cemetery, and afterwards in the Convent Church of the Carmelites. His pictures are rare. The Wallace Collection, the Victoria and Albert Museum (Ionides Collection), and the Dulwich Gallery have each one good example. It has been suggested that the Landscape, No. 72 in our Gallery, hitherto attributed to Rembrandt, is by Brouwer.
Hobbema(Dutch: 1638-1709).See 685.
Adrian van de Velde(Dutch: 1636-1672).See 867.
No. 57 in the Exhibition of Dutch Masters at the Burlington Fine Arts Club, 1900, when it was thus described: "In the centre, among sparse trees in leaf, stands a small farm; to left a man accompanied by a woman on horseback, driving a flock of sheep to pasture; in the left foreground a pool of water, with a cow drinking; in the centre, two herdsmen, with cows, sheep, and goats lying down and feeding. Cool daylight with light clouds spreading over blue sky." Signed in the centre "A. v. Velde 1663."
Willem van de Velde(Dutch: 1633-1707).See 149.
Anthonie Palamedes(Dutch: 1601-1673).
Palamedes was the son of a gem-engraver at Delft. He became Dean of the Painters' Guild. He painted portraits and small "conversation pieces," and sometimes supplied figures for the architectural pictures of his friend Dirk van Delen (see 1010). "The light and spirited pose of his figures, his bold touch, and the skill with which he makes the outline of his little groups stand out, please the eye" (Havard).
Palamedes was the son of a gem-engraver at Delft. He became Dean of the Painters' Guild. He painted portraits and small "conversation pieces," and sometimes supplied figures for the architectural pictures of his friend Dirk van Delen (see 1010). "The light and spirited pose of his figures, his bold touch, and the skill with which he makes the outline of his little groups stand out, please the eye" (Havard).
Pieter Codde(Dutch: 1599-1678).
A painter of Amsterdam much influenced by Frans Hals.
A painter of Amsterdam much influenced by Frans Hals.
Jan van Goyen(Dutch: 1596-1656).See 137.
Nicolas Maes(Dutch: 1632-1693).See 153.
A portrait of the eminent Dutchsavant(1632-1723) who has been called "the father of scientific microscopy." He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1680.
David de Heem(Dutch: 1570-1632).
David de Heem, the elder, born at Utrecht, was the father of the more celebrated still-life painter of the same name. He and his son were the founders of the "still-life" school in their country.
David de Heem, the elder, born at Utrecht, was the father of the more celebrated still-life painter of the same name. He and his son were the founders of the "still-life" school in their country.
Except for the snail, this brightly-coloured arrangement of oysters, a lemon, a plum, cherries and nuts, with a glass of wine, is not unlike the kind of arrangement of actual eatables and drinkables which one may see to-day in the shop-windows of Italian restaurants in London. Nor, in all probability, was the motive of the picture different. "The painting of still-life in Holland," says M. Havard, "was originally sign-painting. Inn-keepers and game-dealers had real pictures as signs, painted upon their shop-fronts, and we know of several of these simple masterpieces which have found their way into important collections" (The Dutch School, p. 260).
Paul Potter(Dutch: 1625-1654).See 849.
Signed, and dated 1647; formerly in the collection of Mr. Hope, of Deepdene.
Pieter Codde(Dutch: 1579-1678).See 2576.
Adrian Ysenbrandt(Flemish: died 1551).
Ysenbrandt was an assistant of Gerard David (see 1045). He came to Bruges, and was admitted into the Painters' Guild in 1510; he worked there till his death. He acquired a reputation for skill in painting the nude and the human countenance; his carefulness of execution and the sweetness of expression which he gave to his faces were much admired. Many of his pictures were sent to Spain (see W. H. Weale in theBurlington Magazine, vol. ii.).
Ysenbrandt was an assistant of Gerard David (see 1045). He came to Bruges, and was admitted into the Painters' Guild in 1510; he worked there till his death. He acquired a reputation for skill in painting the nude and the human countenance; his carefulness of execution and the sweetness of expression which he gave to his faces were much admired. Many of his pictures were sent to Spain (see W. H. Weale in theBurlington Magazine, vol. ii.).
This picture of the Magdalen, before whom an angel holds a crucifix, was in the Exhibition of the Primitives at Bruges in 1902. The artist's careful execution may be noted in the beautifully illuminated MS.
Jan van de Cappelle(Dutch: painted 1650-1680).See 865.