Sir Jean Louis van Kuyck Original Antique Flemish Dutch Belgian 19th Century European Still Life Oil Painting
Jan Louis van Kuyck, (1821-1871), whose full name is recorded as Jean Louis van Kuyck or Jan Lodewijk van Kuyck, was initially a watchmaker. Ill health forced him to abandon this career. While recuperating, he took up sketching for which he showed a remarkable flair. After his convalescence he entered the Academy of Antwerp under the direction of Philippe Jacques van Bree. He later joined the atelier of Baron Gustave Wappers until 1853, when Wappers left to reside in Paris. Van Kuyck’s early works are genre pieces that reflect the Romantic principles of these two masters. According to tradition, he did not find his true calling until 1852, when he finished a sketch of a stable interior begun by a friend. Van Kuyck then executed a painting based on this sketch that was purchased by what is now the Neue Pinakothek, Munich titled Ein Pferderstall (A Stable). Such remarkable success convinced him to devote his talent to similar subjects and he excelled in the depiction of stables filled with horses, cattle, and dogs. He came to be nicknamed the Flemish (George) Morland; in 1852, because of his obvious predilection for such subjects. Wappers recommended Van Kuyck to Queen Victoria for a series of drawings she desired; to commemorate her visit to the rustic village of Terneuzen, located on the banks of the Scheldt. Now part of the Royal Collection of Queen Elizabeth II, such examples as the watercolor The Farm of Pieter de Feyter near Terneuzen, in which the tumble-down condition of the roof is captured, serve to reveal the artist’s fascination for exacting architectural detail. In 1866, Kuyck was awarded a gold medal at the exhibition in Brussels and in 1864 Knighted in the Order of Leopold. He achieved considerable success throughout his career and his works were acquired by the museums of Antwerp, Brussels, and Hamburg. His son was the painter Frans van Kuyck and his brother was the notable landscape artist François Lamorinière. Among his pupils was the American painter John Henry Dolph who would also become famous for animal subjects. Most enduring was Van Kuyck’s reputation for technical proficiency, perhaps best stated in Bryan’s Dictionary of Painters and Engravers, “his paintings are remarkable for the beauty of their finish, the exquisiteness of their colouring, and the truth of their representations.”
Jean (Jan) Louis (Lodewidijk) van Kuyck
(1821-1871)
Flemish
Still Life of Grapes in a Glass Bowl, Peaches, Cherries, Pomegranate
Approximately 1870
The painting measures approximately 29.5" X 23 3/4", plus the frame
Oil on Canvas
(nailed to stretcher bars)
Signed lower right
Condition: Abrasion to upper left, isolated area, smaller than the size of a quarter. The canvas is a bit loose from the stretcher bars. Some very light paint loss all over the painting from overzealous cleaning was estimated to have been done when the painting was reframed, approximately 1945. Also appears to have been re-varnished during cleaning. Does not appear under black light or by close inspection to have had previous overpaints or any added paint. Frame has some of the molding that has come off, the upper left corner.
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