Thomas de Keyser (c. 1596–1667) was a Dutch painter and [[stone mason]. He excelled as a portrait painter, and was the most in-demand portrait painter in the Netherlands until the 1630s, when Rembrandt eclipsed him in popularity. Rembrandt was influenced by his work, and many of de Keyser's paintings were later falsely attributed to Rembrandt.[1]
Biography
De Keyser was born and died in Amsterdam. He was a son of the architect and sculptor Hendrik de Keyser and the brother of Pieter and Willem de Keyser. Their uncle Aert was a timber dealer, who settled on Houtgracht in a very early stage. According to the Netherlands Institute for Art History, he was a pupil of Cornelis van der Voort.[2] Van der Voort lived in the same street, now the Rembrandthuis. The painters Nicolaes Eliaszoon Pickenoy, who lived next door, Aert Pietersz, Werner van den Valckert have been accredited by different authorities with having developed his talent, and sometimes his works have been confused with these painters, who painted portraits in similar styles.[2] The works of Pieter Lastman and Joachim von Sandrart he knew very well.[3]
In 1626 the painter lived in Jodenbreestraat when he married Machtelt Andries. As a heir of his uncle the property was sold to the Sefardic community and changed into a house synagogue. Thomas de Keyser faced strong competition from Rembrandt, as a portrait painter and received very few commissions. In 1640 he remarried and lived on Lindengracht in the Jordaan. The couple had two sons Pieter and Thomas, both baptized as Remonstrants in 1645 and 1649. He owned a Petit Granit business from 1640 until 1654, which he sold to Pieter. Willem cooperated with the architect Jacob van Campen on sketches for the town hall, but left for England after being accused of fraud.[4] Thomas returned to painting: in 1657 a Nausicaa meeting Odyssey on the beach, destined for "Desolate Boedelkamer" in the town hall.[5] The landscape painter Jacob Isaakszoon van Ruisdael painted a landscape as a background to one of his group portraits, mayor Cornelis de Graeff in front of his estate near Soestdijk.[6] From 1662, at the age of 65, until his death he was chief supervisor of the construction, now the Paleis op de Dam.[7][8] He was buried in the Zuiderkerk, like his father.
Work
His portraiture is full of character and masterly in handling, and often distinguished by a rich golden glow of color and Rembrandtesque chiaroscuro. Some of his portraits are life-size, but the artist generally preferred to keep them on a considerably smaller scale, like the famous Four Amsterdam burgomasters assembled to receive Marie de Medici in 1638, now on display at the Mauritshuis museum in The Hague.
In addition to portraits, he also executed some historical and mythological pictures, such as the Theseus and Ariadne in the Amsterdam town hall, now the Royal Palace.[citation needed]
The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam has the largest collection of paintings by de Keyser. His work can also be seen at the Louvre in Paris, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, the Hermitage in Saint Petersburg and the National Gallery in London, among others.
A contemporary namesake of the painter was Tomas de Keyser (Utrecht, 1597–1651), an stone mason and actor and his cousin.[9]
Gallery
-
Portrait of a silversmith -
The militia company of captain Allaert Cloeck and lieutenant Lucas Jacobsz. Rotgans -
Portrait of a woman -
A Musician and His Daughter, 1629, Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Notes
- ^ Veritus Archived 2007-02-20 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b Thomas de Keyser at the Netherlands Institute for Art History
- ^ Verborgen verhalen. Wijze lessen in de decoraties van het voormalig Stadhuis van Amsterdam. Published on Jul 2, 2015. Auteurs: - Renske Cohen Tervaert, 'Verborgen verhalen' - Eric Jan Sluijter, 'Hoe Theseus werd verzekerd en Odysseus van de ondergang gered' - Jasper Hillegers, 'Verborgen verhalen ontrafeld' grafisch ontwerp: NorthernLight uitgever: Stichting Koninklijk Paleis Amsterdam, p. 21
- ^ The municipal building company The organization of Public Works in the seventeenth century Dutch Republic by G. van Essen, p. 206
- ^ Verborgen verhalen. Wijze lessen in de decoraties van het voormalig Stadhuis van Amsterdam. Published on Jul 2, 2015. Auteurs: - Renske Cohen Tervaert, 'Verborgen verhalen' - Eric Jan Sluijter, 'Hoe Theseus werd verzekerd en Odysseus van de ondergang gered' - Jasper Hillegers, 'Verborgen verhalen ontrafeld' grafisch ontwerp: NorthernLight uitgever: Stichting Koninklijk Paleis Amsterdam, p. 23
- ^ Jacob Isaacksz van Ruisdael at the Netherlands Institute for Art History
- ^ Cultuurarchief
- ^ Daniel Stalpaert (1615-1676) stadsarchitect van Amsterdam en de Amsterdamse stadsfabriek in de periode 1647 tot 1676 Gea van Essen, p. 107
- ^ Letterkundig woordenboek voor Noord en Zuid
References
- This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "De Keyser, Thomas". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 7 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 938.
External links
- Works and literature on Thomas de Keyser
- Artcyclopedia list of museums with works by Thomas de Keyser
- Works at WGA