Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Left
Allegory of Painting
by Vermeer
Right
Wheatfield with Crows
by Van Gogh
Dutch Artists
Jan van Scorel
After prolonged stays in
Germany, Venice and Rome,
where he studied the works of
Giorgione, Michelangelo and
Raphael, Jan Van Scorel
(1495-1562) returned to Utrecht
in 1524. He introduced the
techniques of the
Renaissance to the
Northern Netherlands;
his portraits fuse
Italian solidity of
form with
Netherlandish
delicacy.
not established until the late
19th century, and rests on less
than 40 known works - mainly
domestic interiors with figures -
that are extraordinary in their
handling of space, light and
colour. He was married with 11
children. On his death, his wife
was declared bankrupt, and
his baker kept two of his
paintings against
unpaid bills.
Jan Steen
A prolific
painter of the genre
(everyday) scenes
so popular in the
Dutch 17th century,
Jan Steen (1625-79)
was an innkeeper as
well as an artist. His
often bawdy tavern and
household narratives
were packed with
hidden messages (red stockings
for prostitution, oysters for
sexual liaison, broken eggshells
for mortality), creating allegories
with a moral purpose.
Rembrandt
van Rijn
The greatest artist
of the Dutch Golden
Age
(see p15)
.
Frans Hals
Much loved for his
technique of capturing character
and fleeting expression in his
sitters, Frans Hals (1580-1666)
brought a new realism to
portraiture in the 17th century. His
fine group portraits of civic guards
are displayed in the Frans Hals
Museum in Haarlem
(see p72)
.
Self Portrait at a Young Age
by Rembrandt
Jacob van Ruisdael
Born in Haarlem, Jacob van
Ruisdael (1629-1682), though
not highly regarded in his own
day, has come to be seen as one
of the finest landscape and
seascape painters of the Dutch
school. His works are filled with
restless skies and naturalistic
details. Even calm scenes such
as
The Windmill at Wijk
have a
sense of dramatic grandeur.
Johannes Vermeer
Relatively little is known
about the life of this sublime
Delft artist (1632-75), who
inherited his father's art-dealing
business and painted purely for
pleasure. He gained some
recognition in Holland during his
lifetime, but his importance was
For more on Dutch paintings
See pp12-19
46
