Gerard Edelinck
Encyclopedia
Gerard Edelinck was a Flemish copper-plate engraver.
Edelinck was born in Antwerp, where he received his early training from the engraver Cornelis Galle. He then went to Paris
to improve himself under the teaching of De Poilly. This master likewise had soon done all he could to help him onwards, and Edelinck ultimately took the first rank among line engravers. His excellence was generally acknowledged; and having become known to Louis XIV
he was appointed, on the recommendation of Le Brun
, teacher at the academy established at the Gobelins manufactory
for the training of workers in tapestry
. He was also entrusted with the execution of several important works. In 1677 he was admitted member of the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture (Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture), Paris. The work of this great engraver constitutes an epoch in the art. His prints number more than four hundred.
Edelinck stands above and apart from his predecessors and contemporaries in that he excelled, not in some one respect, but in all respects, that while one engraver attained excellence in correct form, and another in rendering light and shade, and others in giving color to their prints and the texture of surfaces, he, as supreme master of the burin
, possessed and displayed all these separate qualities, in so complete a harmony that the eye is not attracted by any one of them in particular, but rests in the satisfying whole. Edelinck was the first to break through the custom of making prints square, and to execute them in the lozenge
shape.
Edelinck was especially good as an engraver of portrait
s, and executed prints of many of the most eminent persons of his time. Among these are those of Le Brun, Rigaud
, Philippe de Champagne (which the engraver thought his best), Santeuil, La Fontaine, Robert Nanteuil
, Colbert
, John Dryden
, Descartes
, etc. He died at Paris in 1707. His younger brother Jean
, and his son Nicholas
, were also engravers.
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Edelinck was born in Antwerp, where he received his early training from the engraver Cornelis Galle. He then went to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
to improve himself under the teaching of De Poilly. This master likewise had soon done all he could to help him onwards, and Edelinck ultimately took the first rank among line engravers. His excellence was generally acknowledged; and having become known to Louis XIV
Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...
he was appointed, on the recommendation of Le Brun
Charles Le Brun
Charles Le Brun , a French painter and art theorist, became the all-powerful, peerless master of 17th-century French art.-Biography:-Early life and training:...
, teacher at the academy established at the Gobelins manufactory
Gobelins manufactory
The Manufacture des Gobelins is a tapestry factory located in Paris, France, at 42 avenue des Gobelins, near the Les Gobelins métro station in the XIIIe arrondissement...
for the training of workers in tapestry
Tapestry
Tapestry is a form of textile art, traditionally woven on a vertical loom, however it can also be woven on a floor loom as well. It is composed of two sets of interlaced threads, those running parallel to the length and those parallel to the width ; the warp threads are set up under tension on a...
. He was also entrusted with the execution of several important works. In 1677 he was admitted member of the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture (Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture), Paris. The work of this great engraver constitutes an epoch in the art. His prints number more than four hundred.
Edelinck stands above and apart from his predecessors and contemporaries in that he excelled, not in some one respect, but in all respects, that while one engraver attained excellence in correct form, and another in rendering light and shade, and others in giving color to their prints and the texture of surfaces, he, as supreme master of the burin
Burin
Burin from the French burin meaning "cold chisel" has two specialised meanings for types of tools in English, one meaning a steel cutting tool which is the essential tool of engraving, and the other, in archaeology, meaning a special type of lithic flake with a chisel-like edge which was probably...
, possessed and displayed all these separate qualities, in so complete a harmony that the eye is not attracted by any one of them in particular, but rests in the satisfying whole. Edelinck was the first to break through the custom of making prints square, and to execute them in the lozenge
Lozenge
A lozenge , often referred to as a diamond, is a form of rhombus. The definition of lozenge is not strictly fixed, and it is sometimes used simply as a synonym for rhombus. Most often, though, lozenge refers to a thin rhombus—a rhombus with acute angles of 45°...
shape.
Edelinck was especially good as an engraver of portrait
Portrait
thumb|250px|right|Portrait of [[Thomas Jefferson]] by [[Rembrandt Peale]], 1805. [[New-York Historical Society]].A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness,...
s, and executed prints of many of the most eminent persons of his time. Among these are those of Le Brun, Rigaud
Hyacinthe Rigaud
Hyacinthe Rigaud was a French baroque painter of Catalan origin whose career was based in Paris.He is renowned for his portrait paintings of Louis XIV, the royalty and nobility of Europe, and members of their courts and considered one of the most notable French portraitists of the classical period...
, Philippe de Champagne (which the engraver thought his best), Santeuil, La Fontaine, Robert Nanteuil
Robert Nanteuil
Robert Nanteuil was a French printmaker in engraving.He was born about 1623, or, as other authorities state, in 1630, the son of a merchant of Reims...
, Colbert
Jean-Baptiste Colbert
Jean-Baptiste Colbert was a French politician who served as the Minister of Finances of France from 1665 to 1683 under the rule of King Louis XIV. His relentless hard work and thrift made him an esteemed minister. He achieved a reputation for his work of improving the state of French manufacturing...
, John Dryden
John Dryden
John Dryden was an influential English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who dominated the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the period came to be known in literary circles as the Age of Dryden.Walter Scott called him "Glorious John." He was made Poet...
, Descartes
René Descartes
René Descartes ; was a French philosopher and writer who spent most of his adult life in the Dutch Republic. He has been dubbed the 'Father of Modern Philosophy', and much subsequent Western philosophy is a response to his writings, which are studied closely to this day...
, etc. He died at Paris in 1707. His younger brother Jean
Jean Edelinck
Jean Edelinck, a brother of Gerard Edelinck, and probably younger than the latter, was born at Antwerp, but in what year is not known. He preceded his brother to Paris, and there engraved several plates in imitation of his style. Although very unequal to the works of his brother, his prints are not...
, and his son Nicholas
Nicolas Edelinck
Nicolas Edelinck , the son of Gérard Edelinck, was born in Paris. Although he had the advantage of his father's instruction, and of studying in Italy, he never rose above mediocrity. He engraved some portraits, and a few plates for the Crozat Collection...
, were also engravers.
Works
Among his most famous works are:- Holy Family, after RaphaelRaphaelRaffaello Sanzio da Urbino , better known simply as Raphael, was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form and ease of composition and for its visual achievement of the Neoplatonic ideal of human grandeur...
- Penitent Magdalene, after Charles le BrunCharles Le BrunCharles Le Brun , a French painter and art theorist, became the all-powerful, peerless master of 17th-century French art.-Biography:-Early life and training:...
- Alexander at the Tent of Darius, after Le Brun
- Combat of Four Knights, after Leonardo da VinciLeonardo da VinciLeonardo di ser Piero da Vinci was an Italian Renaissance polymath: painter, sculptor, architect, musician, scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, geologist, cartographer, botanist and writer whose genius, perhaps more than that of any other figure, epitomized the Renaissance...
- Christ surrounded with Angels, after Le Brun
- St. Louis praying, after Le Brun
- St Charles Borromeo before a crucifix, after Le Brun
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