Art Wednesday


Anthony Van Dyke (1599-1641), Baroque painter (which I am a fan of, in particular Baroque music) - self portrait above

Born in Antwerp, Van Dyke (along with Peter Paul Ruben who was his tutor) became the most important Flemish painter and one of the best known Baroque artists.  He was called to England by Charles I, King of England and Scotland to become the court painter. In a ten year period he painted 350 paintings, 37 of the King and 30 of the Queen.  The wife of Charles I, Queen Henrietta Maria (younger sister to the King of France) was no beauty, it was told her skin was poor and her teeth yellow, however Van Dyke knew how to please the royals as see in the painting below of Henrietta - looking quite stunning!
The Royal Children (above and below a few years apart) - The eldest son would become Charles II following the death of Oliver Cromwell (1658) who became Lord Protector in 1653 after the be-heading of Charles I. However James, Charles II younger brother would never become King as he was a Catholic and the English did not want another Catholic on the throne.  His Protestant sister Mary became queen with William of Orange (Dutch). (sorry for the history lesson, I just find it fascinating)
Charles I was a little man, but when painted on a big horse he tended to look much bigger - more regal! Van Dyke certainly knew how to keep his job. Painted in 1635.
The Three Faces of Charles I
Lord John Stuart and his brother brother Lord Bernard

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Comments

  1. Jo such beautiful painting full of richness and splendour. Thank you for taking us on this lovely journey today.

    Have a beautiful day. xxxx

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  2. Thanks for the art and history lesson Jo:)
    Very interesting!

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  3. Interesting but not my favourite style of art. It is amazing how diverse all these artists are Jo, that you feature!

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  4. Jo,

    I would agree with Amanda, these are interesting paintings, but they were not my favorite. However, I found the picture entitled, "The Three Faces of Charles" to be quite cleaverly painted.

    Blessings,

    -Lady Rose

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  5. This is great...we have the Kimbell Art Museum near us and we have seen some of these originals.
    Great post...thanks for sharing!

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  6. I enjoy seeing all the fascinating art featured here on Wednesday's.

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  7. Jo,
    It is interesting how much alike we are. I really enjoy Anthony VanDyke in fact I did a paper on him in my Art History class while in College. I would like to to more portraits like his myself, but I am not sure I that good yet. I think I will need a few more years of practice.

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  8. Hi Jo~ This was interesting. The children haven't seen this post yet. I wonder what they will think of these. I prefer the last painting. I like the expression on the father. I tend to think this sort of painting feels a little prideful...the way they posed and the dress of the time. Still, the things a person can do with a paint brush are amazing.

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  9. Mrs Santos - these paintings were done for the rich to fill their homes with - it would have been considered important to have a painting done by the Court Painter. It showed their standing in the British establishment, very important in those days.

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