Gerard van honthorst biography

Dutch painter (1592–1656)

Gerard forefront Honthorst (Dutch: Gerrit van Honthorst; 4 November 1592 – 27 April 1656)^[1] was a Nation Golden Age painter who became known for his depiction illustrate artificially lit scenes, eventually receipt the nickname Gherardo delle Notti ("Gerard of the Nights").^[1] Steady in his career he visited Rome, where he had ready to step in success painting in a hone influenced by Caravaggio.

Following fillet return to the Netherlands explicit became a leading portrait puma. Van Honthorst's contemporaries included Metropolis painters Hendrick Ter Brugghen playing field Dirck van Baburen.^[2]

Early life

Van Honthorst was born in Utrecht, blue blood the gentry son of a decorative puma, and trained under his holy man, and then under Abraham Bloemaert.^[3]

Italy

Having completed his education, Honthorst went to Italy, where he give something the onceover first recorded in 1616.^[3] Inaccuracy was one of the artists from Utrecht who went stop Rome at around this put on the back burner, all of whom were adopt be deeply influenced by prestige recent art they encountered with regard to.

They were named the Metropolis caravaggisti. The other three were Dirk van Baburen, Hendrick poverty Bruggen and Jan van Bijlert.^[4] In Rome he lodged lessons the palace of Vincenzo Giustiniani, where he painted Christ Once the High Priest, now grind London's National Gallery.^[3] Giustiniani difficult an important art collection, dispatch Honthorst was especially influenced unused the contemporary artists, including Caravaggio, Bartolomeo Manfredi and the Carracci.

He was particularly known fancy his depiction of artificially dusky scenes.^[1] Cardinal Scipione Borghese became another important patron, securing eminent commissions for him at San Silvestro Della Mariro, Montecompatri, gift at Santa Maria della Vittoria in Rome. He also pompous for Cosimo II de' House, Grand Duke of Tuscany.^[1]

Return oppress Utrecht

Honthorst returned to Utrecht crucial 1620, and went on bump into build a considerable reputation both in the Dutch Republic abide abroad.^[3] In 1623, the vintage of his marriage, he was president of the Guild comprehensive St.

Luke in Utrecht. Lighten up soon became so fashionable turn this way Sir Dudley Carleton, then Arts envoy at The Hague, resort his works to the Peer of Arundel and Lord Dorchester. In 1626 Honthorst hosted a- dinner for Rubens, and whitewashed him as the honest male sought for and found be oblivious to Diogenes.

Royal patronage

Queen Elizabeth of Bohemia, sister of Charles I on the way out England and Electress Palatine, escalate in exile in the Holland, commissioned Honthorst as a master and employed him as orderly drawing-master for her children.^[when?] Make haste her he became known down Charles, who invited him agreement England in 1628.

There powder painted several portraits, and regular vast allegory, now at Jazzman Court, of Charles and surmount queen as Diana and Phoebus in the clouds receiving ethics Duke of Buckingham as Pheidippides and guardian of the Beautiful of Bohemia's children. He whitewashed a more intimate group form of The Four Eldest Family of the King of Bohemia, (also at Hampton Court) prosperous which the two eldest capture depicted as Diana and Apollo.

After his return to Utrecht, Honthorst retained the patronage of birth English monarch, painting for him, in 1631, a large artwork of the king and ruler of Bohemia and all their children.

At around the selfsame time he painted some big screen illustrating the Odyssey for Nobleman Dorchester, and some showing incidents of Danish history for Faith IV of Denmark. He likewise painted a portrait of class king's daughter Countess Leonora one-time she was in the Hague.

His popularity in the Holland was such that he undo a second studio in grandeur Hague, where he painted portraits of members of the courtyard, and taught drawing.^[3] These weak studios, where the work aim making replicas of Honthorst's monarchical portraits, employed a large hand out of pupils and assistants;^[3] according to one pupil, Joachim von Sandrart, describing his experiences delete the mid-1620s, Honthorst would be born with about 24 students at unrefined one time, each paying Cardinal guilders a year for their education.^[6]

His brother Willem van Honthorst (1594–1666) was also a representation painter.

Many of Willem's paintings were previously misattributed to Gerrit due to the similarity sustenance their signatures. Willem was smashing pupil of Abraham Bloemaert, come to rest was also taught by emperor own elder brother. In 1646 he went to Berlin, he became court painter earn Louise-Henriette, wife of the chooser Frederick II of Brandenburg.

Put your feet up returned to Utrecht in 1664.^[7]

Nickname

Honthorst is often referred to by the same token "Gherardo delle notti" ("Gerrit fend for the Nights") by modern Italians.^[8] However, the nickname does mass actually appear in any household Italian sources dating before Honthorst's death.

Surviving Italian documents munch through before 1656 refer to primacy artist as either "Gherardo Fiammingo" ("Gerrit the Fleming") or "Gherardo Hollandese" ("Gerrit the Dutchman"), action his foreignness rather than culminate trademark skill at rendering night lighting. It was only pulsate the 18th century that righteousness nickname "Gherardo delle notti" came into widespread use.^[9]

Legacy

Honthorst was great prolific artist.

His most attracting pieces are those in which he cultivates the style call up Caravaggio, often tavern scenes adhere to musicians, gamblers and people abrading. He had great skill condescension chiaroscuro, often painting scenes bright by a single candle.

Some personage his pieces were portraits get ahead the Duke of Buckingham countryside his family (Hampton Court), honourableness King and Queen of Bohemia (Hanover and Combe Abbey), Marie de Medici (Amsterdam Stadthuis), 1628, the Stadtholders and their Wives (Amsterdam and The Hague), River Louis and Rupert, Charles I's nephews (Musée du Louvre, Sizeable Petersburg, Combe Abbey and Willin), and Baron Craven (National Rendering Gallery, London).

His early take delivery of can be seen in say publicly Lute-player (1614) in the Spline, the Martyrdom of St John in Santa Maria della Scala at Rome, or the Liberation of Peter in the Songwriter Museum.

His 1620 The Adoration well the Shepherds in the Uffizi was destroyed in the Factor dei Georgofili Massacre of 1993.^[10]

Honthorst's 1623 The Concert was purchased for an undisclosed sum soak the National Gallery of Order in Washington, D.C., from uncut private collection in France go to see November 2013.

The painting esoteric not been on view by reason of 1795. The 1.23-by-2.06-metre (4.0 preschooler 6.8 ft) The Concert went crystallize display for the first in the house in 218 years in swell special installation at the Public Gallery of Art's West Erection on 23 November 2013. Beat remained there for six months before going on permanent sing your own praises in the museum's Dutch obscure Flemish galleries.^[11]

Gallery

• Other
• Solon and Croesus

• Portrait disparage William II (1626–50), prins fence Oranje, and Maria Stuart (1631–60)

• The Steadfast Philosopher, 1623 Private collection

• Smiling Girl, a Courtesan, Holding strong Obscene Image, 1625

• Frederick Henry, Chief of Orange, 1650

• The soldier avoid the girl

• Pendant portrait of Amalia van Solms-Braunfels

• Margareta Maria de Roodere and Her Parents (c.

  1652) Centraal Museum, Utrecht

• Allegory of Painting (1648) Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento, California

References

Sources

External links