Offered by Stéphane Renard Fine Art
REQUEST INFORMATION
20 x 32 cm (77/8 '' x 125/8 '') - Framed 35 x 47 cm (133/4 '' x 18 ½'')
Signed with the initials "JB" lower right
The attribution to Jan de Bisschop has been confirmed by the RKD with the following comment: "We base this attribution on the dark washes, the subject represented and the monogram".
This powerful wash with warm hues is highly evocative of the talent of Jan de Bisschop, an amateur artist of the Dutch Golden Age. He is an endearing character: although most of his work, consisting mainly of landscapes and reproductions of artworks, is largely inspired by Italy, he probably never went to Italy. An amateur artist, he nevertheless had a real influence on other artists of his time, such as in particular his friend Jacob van der Ulft.
1. Jan de Bisschop, lawyer and amateur painter and engraver
Despite his amateur status, Jan de Bisschop (also known as Johannes Episcopius) was widely influential in art and art publishing. Born in Amsterdam in 1628, he became a lawyer and set up practice in The Hague around 1652. He later founded a drawing academy there. He mingled with an elite circle of intellectuals that included his friend and fellow amateur draftsman Constantijn Huygens the Younger (1628 - 1697).
Bartholomeus Breenbergh (1598 - 1657), who lived in de Bisschop's native Amsterdam after a long stay in Rome (between 1619 and 1630), most influenced de Bisschop's draftsmanship. De Bisschop's landscapes in brown ink wash imitated Breenbergh's evocations of Italianate sunlight. Despite drawing numerous Italianate landscapes, de Bisschop probably never went to Italy; other artists' works were his sources. Whether drawing with pen or brush, de Bisschop used a warm golden-brown ink, later named "bisschops-inkt" after him. De Bisschop in his turn had a great influence on his friend Jacob van der Ulft.
In addition to landscapes, de Bisschop made figure studies and drawings after classical sculptures and famous paintings, primarily by Italian artists. His publications, which reproduced antique sculptures and Old Master drawings, were instrumental in disseminating the classical style in Holland. He also designed title pages for books, mostly by classical authors, and published his own compositions.
2. Description of the artwork
Behind a lake that appears to be cascading down a waterfall, framed by two trees, the landscape presented here by James de Bisschop evokes an ideal city surrounded by walls, into which opens a gateway flanked by two towers that can be seen on the left. The city is dominated by an amphitheatre that seems disproportionately high for its circumference. An obelisk and a building with a dome reminiscent of the Pantheon in Rome complete this reference to antiquity.
It is to be noted that the upper part of our drawing (including the large tree on the left) is on a different sheet which has been pasted with the lower part’s one. This technique was widely used in the 17th century at a time when paper was costly to hide a mistake or allow some reworking while keeping the largest part of a drawing.
Two related drawings in the Amsterdam Rijksmuseum illustrate Bisschop's highly specific technique (and his taste for oblong formats): Mountain Landscape in Italy (RP-T- 1898-A-3528. 118 x 209 mm) and Colosseum in Rome with Buildings (RP-T-1909-39. 124 x 208 mm), both reproduced in the gallery.
3. Framing
Our drawing is presented in a Louis XVI-style carved and gilded wood frame.
Delevery information :
The prices indicated are the prices for purchases at the gallery.
Depending on the price of the object, its size and the location of the buyer we are able to offer the best transport solution which will be invoiced separately and carried out under the buyer's responsibility.
