French 1600-1682 Claude Lorrain Galleries In Rome, not until the mid-17th century were landscapes deemed fit for serious painting. Northern Europeans, such as the Germans Elsheimer and Brill, had made such views pre-eminent in some of their paintings (as well as Da Vinci in his private drawings or Baldassarre Peruzzi in his decorative frescoes of vedute); but not until Annibale Carracci and his pupil Domenichino do we see landscape become the focus of a canvas by a major Italian artist. Even with the latter two, as with Lorrain, the stated themes of the paintings were mythic or religious. Landscape as a subject was distinctly unclassical and secular. The former quality was not consonant with Renaissance art, which boasted its rivalry with the work of the ancients. The second quality had less public patronage in Counter-Reformation Rome, which prized subjects worthy of "high painting," typically religious or mythic scenes. Pure landscape, like pure still-life or genre painting, reflected an aesthetic viewpoint regarded as lacking in moral seriousness. Rome, the theological and philosophical center of 17th century Italian art, was not quite ready for such a break with tradition. In this matter of the importance of landscape, Lorrain was prescient. Living in a pre-Romantic era, he did not depict those uninhabited panoramas that were to be esteemed in later centuries, such as with Salvatore Rosa. He painted a pastoral world of fields and valleys not distant from castles and towns. If the ocean horizon is represented, it is from the setting of a busy port. Perhaps to feed the public need for paintings with noble themes, his pictures include demigods, heroes and saints, even though his abundant drawings and sketchbooks prove that he was more interested in scenography. Lorrain was described as kind to his pupils and hard-working; keenly observant, but an unlettered man until his death. The painter Joachim von Sandrart is an authority for Claude's life (Academia Artis Pictoriae, 1683); Baldinucci, who obtained information from some of Claude's immediate survivors, relates various incidents to a different effect (Notizie dei professoni del disegno). John Constable described Claude Lorrain as "the most perfect landscape painter the world ever saw", and declared that in Claude??s landscape "all is lovely ?C all amiable ?C all is amenity and repose; the calm sunshine of the heart"  Related Paintings of Claude Lorrain :. | landscape with the marriage of lsaac and rebecca | Embarkation of St Paula Romana at Ostia | Verstobung der Hagar | Port with Villa Medici | Details of The Sermon on the mount |
Related Artists:
David Vinckboons
Flemish Baroque Era Painter, 1576-ca.1632 was a Dutch painter of Flemish origin. Vinckboons was one of the most prolific and popular painters and print designers in the Netherlands. Himself influenced by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, he was instrumental together with "Hans Bol and Roelant Savery" in the development of genre painting in the northern Netherlands. The family moved to Antwerp around 1580, and then to Middelburg after the Spanish occupation of Antwerp in 1585. It is not likely they moved for religious reasons to Amsterdam. His father became a citizen in 1591, but none of his grandchildren were baptized in a Calvinist church. In 1602 David married in Leeuwarden to Agneta van Loon, the daughter of a notary. Then he lived in Sint Antoniesbreestraat like many other artists and painters. According to Karel van Mander he did not have any teacher other than his father Phillipe, a painter on canvas with watercolors, an art form practised mainly in his birthplace of Mechelen. David specialized in elegant figures in park-like landscapes (Outdoor Merry Company, 1610; Vienna, Akademie der Bildenden Kenste) as well as Kermis and other village festivals. His landscapes reflect his contact with Gillis van Coninxloo. Vinckboons attracted a number of students; among them were Gillis d'Hondecoeter, Claes Janszoon Visscher and probably Esaias van de Velde.
Albert Gallatin Hoit
Albert Gallatin Hoit (December 13, 1809 - December 18, 1856) was an American painter who lived in Boston, Massachusetts. He painted portraits of William Henry Harrison, Daniel Webster and Brenton Halliburton. Hoit was born in Sandwich, New Hampshire, December 13, 1809, to Gen. Daniel Hoit and Sally Flanders. Siblings included William Henry Hoit. Hoit graduated from Dartmouth College in 1829. He married Susan Hanson in 1838; children included Anna M. Hoit. Hoit "devoted his life to portrait painting, first at Portland, Maine, in 1831, and then in Bangor and Belfast, Maine, and St. John's, N.B. until Boston, Mass., became his permanent home in 1839." He also travelled in Europe, "Oct. 1842 to July 1844, ... enjoying the galleries of art in Italy, Paris, and London." He created portraits of Pietro Bachi, Johanna Robinson Hazen, J. Eames, and others. He painted a portrait of Daniel Webster "for Paran Stevens, which hung for years in the Revere House, Boston, and now belongs to the Union League Club, New York." He was affiliated with the Boston Artists' Association; and exhibited at the gallery of the New England Art Union in the 1850s. In 1848, he kept a studio on Tremont Row in Boston, and lived in Roxbury. By 1852, he'd moved his studio to Washington Street. Hoit died in Jamaica Plain, December 18, 1856, at age 47.
Albert Pinkham Ryder
1847-1917 Albert Pinkham Ryder Gallery Albert Pinkham Ryder (March 19, 1847 ?C March 28, 1917) was an American painter best known for his poetic and moody allegorical works and seascapes, as well as his eccentric personality. While his art shared an emphasis on subtle variations of color with tonalist works of the time, it was unique for accentuating form in a way that some art historians regard as modernist. After 1900, around the time of his father's death, Ryder's creativity fell dramatically. For the rest of his life he spent his artistic energy on occasionally re-working existing paintings, some of which lay scattered about his New York apartment. Visitors to Ryder's home were struck by his slovenly habits -- he never cleaned, and his floor was covered with trash, plates with old food, and a thick layer of dust, and he would have to clear space for visitors to stand or sit. He was shy and did not seek the company of others, but received company courteously and enjoyed telling stories or talking about his art. He gained a reputation as a loner, but he maintained social contacts, enjoyed writing letters, and continued to travel on occasion to visit friends. While Ryder's creativity fell after the turn of the century, his fame grew. Important collectors of American art sought Ryder paintings for their holdings and often lent choice examples for national art exhibitions, as Ryder himself had lost interest in actively exhibiting his work. In 1913, ten of his paintings were shown together in the historic Armory Show, an honor reflecting the admiration felt towards Ryder by modernist artists of the time. By 1915 Ryder's health deteriorated, and he died at the home of a friend who was caring for him. A memorial exhibition of his work was held in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York in 1918. While the works of many of Ryder's contemporaries were partly or mostly forgotten through much of the 20th century, Ryder's artistic reputation has remained largely intact owing to his unique and forward-looking style. Ryder was along with Thomas Hart Benton, David Siqueiros and Pablo Picasso an important influence on Jackson Pollock's paintings.