Quiringh van Brekelenkam

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Quiringh van Brekelenkam (* around 1620 probably in Zwammerdam near Leiden ; † 1668 in Leiden; actually Quiringh Gerritsz [on] van Brekelenkam ) was a Dutch genre painter .

Life

Quiringh Gerritsz van Brekelenkam was born in 1622. His parents were Gerrit Adriaens de Plutter and Magdalena Crijnen, who were both likely Catholics. His birthplace could have been Zwammerdam, a village near Alphen aan de Rijn, where his father worked as a tailor. The painter grew up in an environment that most likely inspired him to paint the types of scenes on which he had a true patent on which his fame today rests: the tailor and shoemaker's shops, of which he was roughly between 1653 and 1664 made twenty-five variants. Brekelenkam may have received his artistic training in Leiden. According to an anonymous biographer from the 18th century, he was "een discipel van Dou" (a student of [Gerrit] Dou). Since the resemblance to his work is only superficial, a teaching by Dou (1613–75) is now seriously questioned. Nevertheless, a previously overlooked signature on a document indicates a close connection with this Leiden master.

When Dou accompanied his parents on February 16, 1646 to draw up their wills before a notary, they were joined by Van Brekelenkam, who signed the document “Quiringh Gerritsz van Breeckelenkam, Schilder” (Quiringh Gerritsz van Brekelenkam, painter). Van Brekelenkam joined joined the newly founded Guild of St. Luke in February 1648, from which his two earliest dated paintings come. In addition, Van Brekelenkam and Maria Jansdr Charle were married in April 1648 in the Catholic Church in Rijnsaterwoude. Quiringh and Maria had six children, all of whom were baptized in the secret Catholic church on Bakkersteeg. The baptism of Van Brekelenkam's first child, Magdalena, on April 9, 1649, was attested by Johannes van Oudenrogge (1621 / 22–53), another Catholic painter. Van Oudenrogge had married Van Brekelenkam's sister Aeltje a month earlier in Leiden. In 1651 the couple moved to Haarlem, where Aeltje ran a paint shop after Van Oudenrogge's death in 1653. Death also visited the house of Quiringh van Brekelenkam, who buried Mary in the Pieterskerk in Leiden in August 1655 shortly after her baptism.

Only a year later, on September 24, 1656, Van Brekelenkam took a second wife, Elisabeth de Beaumont, widow of Willem Simons Romeijn and probably the daughter of a shoemaker. From 1657 to 1668 the couple had at least three children who, like their half-brothers and sisters before them, were all baptized as Catholics in the secret church on Bakkersteeg. According to some of his biographers, Van Brekelenkam acquired a license to sell beer and brandy from the city council around 1656. However, Angelika Lasius offers a plausible explanation for the fact that this request is based on a misunderstanding and, moreover, that no document was found confirming an alcohol permit. However, two court cases in 1660 over overdue debts suggest the artist had financial problems - the amounts are not high - and yet he does not appear to have been well. According to the anonymous 18th century biographer mentioned above, who was certain Dou Van Brekelenkam had been a teacher, “[Van Brekelenkam] had a difficult situation at home with children and an extremely strict life, which led him to do many paintings produce to make some money. What regrettably happened to various painters from the Dou school is that there were so many highly talented artists in their day who were comparable to their master [Dou], Frans van Mieris, and others that they were ignored. No less than fifty-five paintings by Van Brekelenkam are listed in twenty documents. It is noteworthy that two people even owned a remarkable number of works by him: the Catholic merchant Hendrick Bugge van Ring had eighteen paintings and the landlord Pieter van Grient certainly had eleven, possibly even as many as sixteen works. "

The exact date of Van Brekelenkam's death is unknown. He paid his contribution to the Guild of St. Luke for the last time in 1667. His youngest child was baptized a year later, on May 29, 1668, and several dated paintings by him are known from the same year. No other traces of the artist have been found and it is believed that he died shortly after 1668.

He painted a large number of moral pictures from popular life, around 170 of which have survived.

Works (selection)

literature

Web links

Commons : Quiringh van Brekelenkam  - collection of images, videos and audio files
personal data
SURNAME Brekelenkam, Quiringh van
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Brekelenkam, Quiringh Gerritsz. van; Brekelenkam, Quirijn Gerritsz. van; Brekelenkam, Quirijn van
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Dutch genre painter
DATE OF BIRTH around 1620
PLACE OF BIRTH Zwammerdam , Leiden
DATE OF DEATH 1668
Place of death Suffer