Category: Dutch Golden Age

Yonker Ramp and His Sweetheart by Franz Hals

~ JezzieG ~ 3 Comments
Yonker Ramp and His Sweetheart by Franz Hals

Yonker Ramp and His Sweetheart
1623
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Oil on canvas
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA

“Yonker Ramp and His Sweetheart” depicts a couple in a tavern, he is raising a glass with a smile while a dog is resting its head in his left hand. A half-opened curtain reveals another room. It is the only surviving Hals’ artwork that Is dated with an inscription on the canvas. The title was given to the piece in the 18th century with Yonker meaning young gentleman, however, the woman is more likely to have been a prostitute than his lover. The subject of long debates among art historians, the meaning of the painting is suggested to be a moral message on the perils of excess, as was common in genre pieces of the time. However, whatever the meaning behind the portrait it offers the viewer of today a peek into everyday life in 17th-century Haarlem

Franz Hals
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Born: 1582/83, Antwerp, Flanders
Nationality: Dutch
Died: 26 August 1666, Haarlem, Dutch Republic

Franz Hals 1582/3-1666

Hals was a painter of the Dutch Golden Age. Particularly known for his portraiture, he lived and worked in Haarlem, The Netherlands. Hals played a vital role in the evolution of 17th-century group portraiture and his known for his loose brushwork

A Couple by Franz Hals

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A Couple by Franz Hals

A Couple
1622
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Oil on canvas
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

“A Couple” was probably painted to celebrate the marriage of Isaac Abrahamsz Massa and Beatrix van der Laen in 1622. Unusual for the time it portrays the couple in relaxed poses and an outdoor location which was at odds with usual commissioned works to celebrate marriages with their formal and carefully posed format. The couple is seated and laid back beneath a tree both smiling knowingly at the viewer. Their open body language and direct gazes give the painting a sense of intimacy rarely present in other works of the time.

Franz Hals 1582/3-1666

Franz Hals
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Born: 1582/83, Antwerp, Flanders
Nationality: Dutch
Died: 26 August 1666, Haarlem, Dutch Republic

Hals was a painter of the Dutch Golden Age. Particularly known for his portraiture, he lived and worked in Haarlem, The Netherlands. Hals played a vital role in the evolution of 17th-century group portraiture and is known for his loose brushwork

The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1616 by Franz Hals

~ JezzieG
The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1616 by Franz Hals

The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1616
1616
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Oil on canvas
Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem, The Netherlands

The first of three paintings for the St. George civic guard in Haarlem, “The Banquet of the Officers of the St. George Militia Company” is a large-scale work featuring the officers at their farewell banquet. Group portraits, known as shuttersstukken, were popular in the 17th century. The group would collectively decide on the format of painting then all sit separately for their likeness to be painted. Hals also demonstrates his abilities with still-life, especially the luxuriously decked table down to the detail of the figurative pattern of the tablecloth.

Franz Hals 1582/3-1666

Franz Hals
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Born: 1582/83, Antwerp, Flanders
Nationality: Dutch
Died: 26 August 1666, Haarlem, Dutch Republic

Hals was a painter of the Dutch Golden Age. Particularly known for his portraiture, he lived and worked in Haarlem, The Netherlands. Hals played a vital role in the evolution of 17th-century group portraiture and is known for his loose brushwork

The Night Watch by Rembrandt

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The Night Watch by Rembrandt

The Night Watch
1642
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Oil on Canvas – Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Often referred to as a ‘corporation portrait’, “The Night Watch” is uniquely Dutch. Rembrandt painted this large canvas between 1640 and 1642 as a commission for the musketeer branch of a civic militia, a wealthy segment of Amsterdam’s society. Members could be assigned to put out fires, guard gates, police the streets, and maintain order. They were required to attend parades for visiting royalty and festive occasions. Rembrandt presented a bustling and somewhat confused scene of members preparing for an event.

Rembrandt 1606-1669

Rembrandt
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Born: 15 July 1606, Leiden, Netherlands
Nationality: Dutch
Died: 4 October 1669, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Rembrandt’s life and work were fuelled by an intense psychological study of people, objects, and their surroundings and a strong Christian devotion. Incredibly gifted, Rembrandt became a master of portraiture, historical, mythological, and biblical sense from a very young age. His techniques and use of materials were sensitive and spontaneous. His everchanging approach to colour, composition, and shadow produced powerfully moving and natural moments of human existence. His mastery of light and texture emphasized emotional depth and weaved a common theme through all his work confirming his status as one of art’s greatest and most innovative masters

Malle Babbe by Franz Hals

~ JezzieG
Malle Babbe by Franz Hals

Malle Babbe
1633-35
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Oil on canvas
Gemäldegalerie, Berlin, Germany

“Malle Babbe “ is an unusual portrait depicting a woman sitting at a table holding a beer jug in her right hand and perched on her left shoulder sits an owl. She is laughing with her head turned to her left. Plainly dressed in brown with white collar and cuffs. It is considered that the subject was a real citizen of Haarlem and, using the translation of the Dutch “Malle Babbe” (“Malle” being crazy and “Babbe” a diminutive of Barbara), who is likely to suffer from a mental illness.

Franz Hals 1582/3-1666

Franz Hals
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Born: 1582/83, Antwerp, Flanders
Nationality: Dutch
Died: 26 August 1666, Haarlem, Dutch Republic

Hals was a painter of the Dutch Golden Age. Particularly known for his portraiture, he lived and worked in Haarlem, The Netherlands. Hals played a vital role in the evolution of 17th-century group portraiture and his known for his loose brushwork

Mercury and Argus by Carel Fabritius

~ JezzieG
Mercury and Argus by Carel Fabritius

Mercury and Argus
1646
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Oil on canvas
Los Angeles County Museum of Art, California, USA

“Mercury and Argus” appears to be a pastoral genre scene of two relaxing male figures and a group of cattle and sheep. In fact, it depicts a mythical story of Jupiter falling in love with a woman, Io, and he turns her into a cow in order to hide her from Juno, his jealous wife. Juno on discovering the deception asks the shepherd Argus to guard the cow against Jupiter. Jupiter, in turn, sends Mercury to steal back the cow. In accordance with Juno’s orders, Argus gives Mercury wine until he falls asleep (the moment portrayed by Fabritius) then proceeds to sever his head with the sword shown laying to the left of Argus.

Carel Fabritius 1622-1664

Carel Fabritius
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Born: 27 February 1622, Middenbeemster, Dutch Republic
Nationality: Dutch
Died: 12 October 1654, Delft, Dutch Republic

Fabritius was a painter and a pupil of Rembrandt. He worked in Rembrandt’s studio in Amsterdam. A member of the Delft, Fabritius developed his own artistic style and experimented with perspective and light. His works include “A View of Delft” (1652), “The Sentry” (1654), and “The Goldfinch” (1654)

Samson and Delilah by Anthony van Dyck

~ JezzieG
Samson and Delilah by Anthony van Dyck

Samson and Delilah
1630
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Oil on canvas
Collection of Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, Austria

“Samson and Delilah” depicts Old Testament mythology the moment after Samson has been betrayed. A barely clothed Samson struggles to resist the soldiers taking him to his death. Van Dyck captures the climax of the story with Samson’s agony racked on his face and the contortions of his body. Delilah is shown as a woman in conflict regretting her decision to betray her lover.

Anthony van Dyck

Anthony van Dyck
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age, Grand Manner Portraiture
Born: 22 March 1599, Antwerp, Belgium
Nationality: Flemish
Died: 9 December 1641, London, England

Van Dyck was a Baroque artist and was a leading painter in the court of England. He began painting at an early age and was a successful independent artist by his late teens becoming a master in the Antwerp guild in 1618. At this time Van Dyck was working with Peter Paul Rubens, a leading northern painter of the day.

The Jewish Bride by Rembrandt

~ JezzieG
The Jewish Bride by Rembrandt

The Jewish Bride
1667
Baroque, Golden Era
Oil on Canvas
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Pic

From Rembrandt’s mature period “The Jewish Bride” was intended for a small and selective audience, appreciative of the artist as a painter of psychological expression in his paintings. The moderately sized canvas with no scenery as if completely focused on the intimacy within the moment. This depiction of Isaac and Rebekah Rembrandt shows one of the most serene, gentle, and thoughtful Biblical paintings. It is a perfect example of the portrait historie common during the Dutch Golden Age.

Rembrandt

Rembrandt
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Born: 15 July 1606, Leiden, Netherlands
Nationality: Dutch
Died: 4 October 1669, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Rembrandt’s life and work were fuelled by an intense psychological study of people, objects, and their surroundings and strong Christian devotion. Incredibly gifted, Rembrandt became a master of portraiture, historical, mythological, and biblical sense from a very young age. His techniques and use of materials were sensitive and spontaneous. His everchanging approach to colour, composition, and shadow produced powerfully moving and natural moments of the human existence. His mastery of light and texture emphasized emotional depth weaved a common theme through all his work confirming his status as one of art’s greatest and innovative masters

Man in Oriental Costume by Rembrandt

~ JezzieG ~ 3 Comments
Man in Oriental Costume by Rembrandt

Man in Oriental Costume
1632
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Oil on canvas
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York, USA

An ambitious painting, ‘Man in Oriental Costume’ depicts the Dutch idea of a Near Eastern Potentate, an exotic subject that would appeal a knowledgeable and experienced collector. A stately and colossal figure draped in a golden garment sternly stares out, with his head and shoulders lit dramatically from the front and back. The gold of his garment gleams beneath a metallic scarf and silver turban. Rembrandt painted many Middle Eastern figures during the 1630s reflecting the commercial enterprises of the Dutch Republic in the Middle East

Rembrandt
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Born: 15 July 1606, Leiden, Netherlands
Nationality: Dutch
Died: 4 October 1669, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Rembrandt’s life and work were fuelled by an intense psychological study of people, objects, and their surroundings and a strong Christian devotion. Incredibly gifted, Rembrandt became a master of portraiture, historical, mythological, and biblical sense from a very young age. His techniques and use of materials was sensitive and spontaneous. His everchanging approach to colour, composition, and shadow produced powerfully moving and natural moments of the human existence. His mastery of light and texture emphasized emotional depth weaved a common theme through all his work confirming his status as one of art’s greatest and innovative masters