Antwerp school
Encyclopedia
The Antwerp School is a term for the artists active in Antwerp, first during the 16th century when the city was the economic center of the Low Countries
, and then during the 17th century when it became the artistic stronghold of the Flemish Baroque
under Peter Paul Rubens.
as the main trading and commercial center of the Low Countries
around 1500. Painters, artists and craftsmen joined the Guild of Saint Luke
, which educated apprentices and guaranteed quality.
The first school of artists that emerged in the city were the Antwerp Mannerists
, a group of anonymous late Gothic
painters active in the city from about 1500 to 1520. They were followed by Mannerist
painters in the Italian tradition that developed at the end of the High Renaissance
. Jan Mabuse
was a major artist in the city at this time. Other artists, such as Frans Floris
, continued this style.
The iconoclastic
riots ('Beeldenstorm
' in Dutch) of 1566 that preceded the Dutch Revolt
resulted in the destruction of many works of religious art, after which time the churches and monasteries had to be refurnished and redecorated. Artists such as Otto van Veen
and members of the Francken
family, working in a late mannerist style, provided new religious decoration. It also marked a beginning of economic decline in the city, as the Scheldt
river was blockaded by the Dutch Republic
in 1585 and trade diminished.
The city experienced an artistic renewal in the 17th century. The large workshops of Peter Paul Rubens and Jacob Jordaens
, and the influence of Anthony van Dyck
, made Antwerp the center of the Flemish Baroque. The city was an internationally significant publishing centre, and had a huge production of old master print
s and book illustrations. Antwerp animalier
s or animal painters, such as Frans Snyders, Jan Fyt
and Paul de Vos
dominated this speciality in Europe for at least the first half of the century. Many artists joined the Guild of Romanists
, a society for which having visited Rome was a condition of membership. But as the economy continued to decline, and the Habsburg
Governors and the Church reduced their patronage, many artists trained in Antwerp left for the Netherlands, England, France or elsewhere, and by the end of the 17th century Antwerp was no longer a major centre for art.
The artistic legacy of Antwerp is represented in many museums, and paintings of the Antwerp School are successful at auctions.
Low Countries
The Low Countries are the historical lands around the low-lying delta of the Rhine, Scheldt, and Meuse rivers, including the modern countries of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and parts of northern France and western Germany....
, and then during the 17th century when it became the artistic stronghold of the Flemish Baroque
Flemish Baroque painting
Flemish Baroque painting is the art produced in the Southern Netherlands between about 1585, when the Dutch Republic was split from the Habsburg Spain regions to the south by the recapturing of Antwerp by the Spanish, until about 1700, when Habsburg authority ended with the death of King Charles II...
under Peter Paul Rubens.
History
Antwerp took over from BrugesBruges
Bruges is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located in the northwest of the country....
as the main trading and commercial center of the Low Countries
Low Countries
The Low Countries are the historical lands around the low-lying delta of the Rhine, Scheldt, and Meuse rivers, including the modern countries of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and parts of northern France and western Germany....
around 1500. Painters, artists and craftsmen joined the Guild of Saint Luke
Guild of Saint Luke
The Guild of Saint Luke was the most common name for a city guild for painters and other artists in early modern Europe, especially in the Low Countries. They were named in honor of the Evangelist Luke, the patron saint of artists, who was identified by John of Damascus as having painted the...
, which educated apprentices and guaranteed quality.
The first school of artists that emerged in the city were the Antwerp Mannerists
Antwerp Mannerism
Antwerp Mannerism is the name given to the style of a largely anonymous group of painters from Antwerp in the beginning of the 16th century. The style bore no direct relation to Renaissance or Italian Mannerism, but the name suggests a peculiarity that was a reaction to the "classic" style of the...
, a group of anonymous late Gothic
Gothic art
Gothic art was a Medieval art movement that developed in France out of Romanesque art in the mid-12th century, led by the concurrent development of Gothic architecture. It spread to all of Western Europe, but took over art more completely north of the Alps, never quite effacing more classical...
painters active in the city from about 1500 to 1520. They were followed by Mannerist
Mannerism
Mannerism is a period of European art that emerged from the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520. It lasted until about 1580 in Italy, when a more Baroque style began to replace it, but Northern Mannerism continued into the early 17th century throughout much of Europe...
painters in the Italian tradition that developed at the end of the High Renaissance
High Renaissance
The expression High Renaissance, in art history, is a periodizing convention used to denote the apogee of the visual arts in the Italian Renaissance...
. Jan Mabuse
Jan Mabuse
Jan Mabuse was the name adopted by the Flemish painter Jan Gossaert; or Jennyn van Hennegouwe , as he called himself when he matriculated in the guild of St Luke, at Antwerp, in 1503.-Biography:Little is known of his early life...
was a major artist in the city at this time. Other artists, such as Frans Floris
Frans Floris
Frans Floris, or more correctly Frans de Vriendt, called Floris was a Flemish painter. He was a member of a large family trained to the study of art in Flanders.-Biography:...
, continued this style.
The iconoclastic
Iconoclasm
Iconoclasm is the deliberate destruction of religious icons and other symbols or monuments, usually with religious or political motives. It is a frequent component of major political or religious changes...
riots ('Beeldenstorm
Beeldenstorm
Beeldenstorm in Dutch, roughly translatable to "statue storm", or Bildersturm in German , also the Iconoclastic Fury, is a term used for outbreaks of destruction of religious images that occurred in Europe in the 16th century...
' in Dutch) of 1566 that preceded the Dutch Revolt
Dutch Revolt
The Dutch Revolt or the Revolt of the Netherlands This article adopts 1568 as the starting date of the war, as this was the year of the first battles between armies. However, since there is a long period of Protestant vs...
resulted in the destruction of many works of religious art, after which time the churches and monasteries had to be refurnished and redecorated. Artists such as Otto van Veen
Otto van Veen
Otto van Veen, also known by his Latinized name Otto Venius or Octavius Vaenius, was a painter, draughtsman, and humanist active primarily in Antwerp and Brussels in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century...
and members of the Francken
Francken
In the Francken family of Antwerp in the 16th and 17th centuries were 11 painters. Many bore the same Christian name in succession. Hence there is confusion in the classification of paintings not differing widely in style or execution...
family, working in a late mannerist style, provided new religious decoration. It also marked a beginning of economic decline in the city, as the Scheldt
Scheldt
The Scheldt is a 350 km long river in northern France, western Belgium and the southwestern part of the Netherlands...
river was blockaded by the Dutch Republic
Dutch Republic
The Dutch Republic — officially known as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Republic of the United Netherlands, or the Republic of the Seven United Provinces — was a republic in Europe existing from 1581 to 1795, preceding the Batavian Republic and ultimately...
in 1585 and trade diminished.
The city experienced an artistic renewal in the 17th century. The large workshops of Peter Paul Rubens and Jacob Jordaens
Jacob Jordaens
Jacob Jordaens was one of three Flemish Baroque painters, along with Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck, to bring prestige to the Antwerp school of painting. Unlike those contemporaries he never traveled abroad to study Italian painting, and his career is marked by an indifference to their...
, and the influence of Anthony van Dyck
Anthony van Dyck
Sir Anthony van Dyck was a Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England. He is most famous for his portraits of Charles I of England and his family and court, painted with a relaxed elegance that was to be the dominant influence on English portrait-painting for the next...
, made Antwerp the center of the Flemish Baroque. The city was an internationally significant publishing centre, and had a huge production of old master print
Old master print
An old master print is a work of art produced by a printing process within the Western tradition . A date of about 1830 is usually taken as marking the end of the period whose prints are covered by this term. The main techniques concerned are woodcut, engraving and etching, although there are...
s and book illustrations. Antwerp animalier
Animalier
An animalier is an artist, mainly from the 19th century, who specializes in, or is known for, skill in the realistic portrayal of animals. "Animal painter" is the more general term for earlier artists...
s or animal painters, such as Frans Snyders, Jan Fyt
Jan Fyt
Jan Fyt was a Flemish Baroque animal painter and etcher.-Life:...
and Paul de Vos
Paul de Vos
Paul de Vos was a Flemish Baroque painter.De Vos was born in Hulst near Antwerp, now in the Dutch province of Zeeland. Like his older brother Cornelis and younger brother Jan, he studied under the little-known painter David Remeeus...
dominated this speciality in Europe for at least the first half of the century. Many artists joined the Guild of Romanists
Guild of Romanists
The Guild of Romanists was a 16th and 17th century society in Antwerp for humanist and artists; it was a condition of membership that the member had visited Rome. Deans were appointed annually. It was "where 'art-pilgrims' met to keep themselves up to date on news from Rome, whether it be new...
, a society for which having visited Rome was a condition of membership. But as the economy continued to decline, and the Habsburg
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg , also found as Hapsburg, and also known as House of Austria is one of the most important royal houses of Europe and is best known for being an origin of all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1438 and 1740, as well as rulers of the Austrian Empire and...
Governors and the Church reduced their patronage, many artists trained in Antwerp left for the Netherlands, England, France or elsewhere, and by the end of the 17th century Antwerp was no longer a major centre for art.
The artistic legacy of Antwerp is represented in many museums, and paintings of the Antwerp School are successful at auctions.
Sixteenth Century
- Pieter AertsenPieter AertsenPieter Aertsen , called Lange Pier because of his height, was a Dutch historical painter. He was born and died in Amsterdam, and painted there and in Antwerp, though his genre scenes were influential in Italy.-Biography:...
- Paul Bril
- Pieter Bruegel the Elder
- Joos van CleveJoos van CleveJoos van Cleve was a painter active in Antwerp around 1511 to 1540. He was born around 1485 and died in between 1540 and 1541...
- Gillis van ConinxlooGillis van ConinxlooGillis van Coninxloo was a Dutch painter of forest landscapes, the most famous member of a large family of artists. He travelled through France, and lived in Germany for several years to avoid religious persecution....
- Frans FlorisFrans FlorisFrans Floris, or more correctly Frans de Vriendt, called Floris was a Flemish painter. He was a member of a large family trained to the study of art in Flanders.-Biography:...
- Ambrosius Francken the ElderFranckenIn the Francken family of Antwerp in the 16th and 17th centuries were 11 painters. Many bore the same Christian name in succession. Hence there is confusion in the classification of paintings not differing widely in style or execution...
- Frans Francken the ElderFranckenIn the Francken family of Antwerp in the 16th and 17th centuries were 11 painters. Many bore the same Christian name in succession. Hence there is confusion in the classification of paintings not differing widely in style or execution...
- Hieronymus Francken the ElderFranckenIn the Francken family of Antwerp in the 16th and 17th centuries were 11 painters. Many bore the same Christian name in succession. Hence there is confusion in the classification of paintings not differing widely in style or execution...
- Lucas de HeereLucas de HeereLucas de Heere was a Flemish portrait painter, poet and writer.De Heere was a Protestant and became a refugee from the Dutch Revolt against Philip II of Spain, who tried to suppress Protestantism...
- Jan Sanders van HemessenJan Sanders van HemessenJan Sanders van Hemessen was a Flemish Northern Renaissance painter. He was born in Hemiksem, then called Hemessen or Heymissen. Following studies in Italy, in 1524 he settled in Antwerp. A mannerist, his images focused on human failings such as greed and vanity...
- Jan MatsysJan MatsysJan Matsys was a Flemish painter. He was the son of Quentin Matsys and the father of Quentin Metsys the Younger....
- Quentin MatsysQuentin MatsysQuentin Matsys was a painter in the Flemish tradition and a founder of the Antwerp school. He was born at Leuven, where legend states he was trained as an ironsmith before becoming a painter...
- Joos de MomperJoos de MomperJoos de Momper the Younger , also known as Josse de Momper, is one of the most important Flemish landscape painters between Pieter Brueghel the Elder and Peter Paul Rubens...
- Jan MabuseJan MabuseJan Mabuse was the name adopted by the Flemish painter Jan Gossaert; or Jennyn van Hennegouwe , as he called himself when he matriculated in the guild of St Luke, at Antwerp, in 1503.-Biography:Little is known of his early life...
- Adam van NoortAdam van NoortAdam van Noort was a Flemish painter and draughtsman.Van Noort was born and died in Antwerp. He was the teacher to both Peter Paul Rubens and Jacob Jordaens, the latter of whom became his son-in-law. Van Noort was dean of the Guild of St. Luke from 1597 until 1602...
- Joachim PatinirJoachim PatinirJoachim Patinir, also called de Patiner , was a Flemish Northern Renaissance history and landscape painter from the area of modern Wallonia...
- Frans Pourbus the ElderFrans Pourbus the ElderFrans Pourbus the elder was a Flemish Renaissance painter.He was known primarily for his religious and portrait painting and worked mainly in Antwerp. His father was painter Pieter Pourbus and his son was painter Frans Pourbus the younger.-External links:*...
- Frans Pourbus the YoungerFrans Pourbus the youngerFrans Pourbus the younger was a Flemish painter, son of Frans Pourbus the Elder and grandson of Pieter Pourbus. He was born in Antwerp and died in Paris...
- Bartholomeus SprangerBartholomeus SprangerBartholomeus Spranger was a Flemish Northern Mannerist painter, draughtsman, and etcher. He was born in Antwerp in the Habsburg Netherlands .-Biography:...
- Otto van VeenOtto van VeenOtto van Veen, also known by his Latinized name Otto Venius or Octavius Vaenius, was a painter, draughtsman, and humanist active primarily in Antwerp and Brussels in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century...
- Marten de VosMarten de VosMarten de Vos , also Maarten, was a leading Antwerp painter and draughtsman in the late sixteenth century.-Biography:Like Frans Floris, he travelled to Italy and adopted the mannerist style popular at the time. De Vos was also highly influenced by the colors of Venetian painting, and might have...
- Sebastiaan Vranckx
Seventeenth Century
- Hendrick van BalenHendrick van BalenHendrik van Balen was a Flemish Baroque painter.-Biography:Van Balen was born and died in Antwerp. He was a pupil of Adam van Noort and studied art while traveling in Italy...
- Pieter BoelPieter BoelPieter Boel was a Flemish Baroque painter who specialised in lavish still lifes.-Biography:Boel was born in Antwerp. He probably went to Italy in 1650. In 1668, he worked for Charles Le Brun in his first tapestry making studio...
- Adriaen BrouwerAdriaen BrouwerAdriaen Brouwer was a Flemish genre painter active in Flanders and the Dutch Republic in the seventeenth century.-Biography:...
- Jan Brueghel the ElderJan Brueghel the ElderJan Brueghel the Elder was a Flemish painter, son of Pieter Bruegel the Elder and father of Jan Brueghel the Younger. Nicknamed "Velvet" Brueghel, "Flower" Brueghel, and "Paradise" Brueghel, of which the latter two were derived from his floral still lifes which were his favored subjects, while the...
- Jan Brueghel the YoungerJan Brueghel the YoungerJan Brueghel the Younger was a Flemish Baroque painter, and the son of Jan Brueghel the Elder.He was trained by his father and spent his career producing works in a similar style. Along with his brother Ambrosius, he produced landscapes, allegorical scenes and other works of meticulous detail. ...
- Pieter Brueghel the YoungerPieter Brueghel the YoungerPieter Brueghel the Younger /ˈpitəɾ ˈbɾøːxəl/ was a Flemish painter, known for numerous copies after his father Pieter Brueghel the Elder's paintings and nicknamed "Hell Brueghel" for his fantastic treatments of fire and grotesque imagery.-Life:Pieter Brueghel the Younger was the oldest son of the...
- Gaspard de Crayer
- Abraham van DiepenbeeckAbraham van DiepenbeeckAbraham van Diepenbeeck was an erudite and accomplished Dutch painter of the Flemish School.-Biography:...
- Anthony van DyckAnthony van DyckSir Anthony van Dyck was a Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England. He is most famous for his portraits of Charles I of England and his family and court, painted with a relaxed elegance that was to be the dominant influence on English portrait-painting for the next...
- Frans Francken the YoungerFranckenIn the Francken family of Antwerp in the 16th and 17th centuries were 11 painters. Many bore the same Christian name in succession. Hence there is confusion in the classification of paintings not differing widely in style or execution...
- Jan FytJan FytJan Fyt was a Flemish Baroque animal painter and etcher.-Life:...
- Jacob JordaensJacob JordaensJacob Jordaens was one of three Flemish Baroque painters, along with Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck, to bring prestige to the Antwerp school of painting. Unlike those contemporaries he never traveled abroad to study Italian painting, and his career is marked by an indifference to their...
- Erasmus Quellinus
- Peter Paul Rubens
- Jan SiberechtsJan SiberechtsJan Siberechts was a Flemish Baroque landscape painter. He was born in Antwerp, the son of a sculptor with the same name. After establishing himself as an artist in Flanders, he moved to England during his forties.He died in London.-References:...
- Frans Snyders
- David Teniers the YoungerDavid Teniers the YoungerDavid Teniers the Younger was a Flemish artist born in Antwerp, the son of David Teniers the Elder. His son David Teniers III and his grandson David Teniers IV were also painters...
- Theodoor van ThuldenTheodoor van ThuldenTheodoor van Thulden was a Dutch Baroque artist from 's-Hertogenbosch in North Brabant who was active in that city and in Antwerp.-Biography:...
- Adriaen van UtrechtAdriaen van UtrechtAdriaen van Utrecht was a celebrated Flemish Baroque still life painter of the Antwerp school.-Career:Adriaen van Utrecht was, contrary to the suggestion of his name, a native of Antwerp. In 1614 he joined the studio of Herman de Neyt, painter and art dealer, as an apprentice, and was early...
- Cornelis de VosCornelis de Vosright|thumb|Cornelis de Vos, Family portrait, 1631, 165 x 235 cm, Oil on canvas, [[Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Antwerp]]Cornelis de Vos , was a Flemish Baroque painter best known for his portraiture....
- Paul de VosPaul de VosPaul de Vos was a Flemish Baroque painter.De Vos was born in Hulst near Antwerp, now in the Dutch province of Zeeland. Like his older brother Cornelis and younger brother Jan, he studied under the little-known painter David Remeeus...
- Jan WildensJan WildensJan Wildens was a Flemish Baroque painter and draughtsman specializing in landscapes.-Biography:Jan Wildens was born in Antwerp in 1586 and at the age of ten was apprenticed to Pieter Verhulst and entered Antwerp's guild of St. Luke in 1604 as a master...
- Thomas Willeboirts Bosschaert