Dominicus Lampsonius (Latinised form of Dominique Lampsone) (1532, in

Bruges Bruges ( , nl, Brugge ) is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country, and the sixth-largest city of the country by population. The area of the whole city a ...

– 1599, in Liège) was a

Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...

humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "human ...

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...

and painter. A secretary to various Prince-Bishops of Liège, he maintained an extensive correspondence with humanists and artists at home and abroad. His writings on

Netherlandish The Low Countries comprise the coastal Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta region in Western Europe, whose definition usually includes the modern countries of Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands. Both Belgium and the Netherlands derived their ...

artists formed an important contribution to the formation of the so-called

canon.

Life

Lampsonius studied arts and sciences at the University of Leuven. In 1554 he went to England to serve as secretary to

Reginald Pole Reginald Pole (12 March 1500 – 17 November 1558) was an English cardinal of the Catholic Church and the last Catholic archbishop of Canterbury, holding the office from 1556 to 1558, during the Counter-Reformation. Early life Pole was bor ...

, a prominent humanist and

Roman Catholic Cardinal A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

. After Pole's death in 1558, he traveled to Liège where he was secretary to the successive Prince-Bishops (

Robert of Berghes Robert of Berghes or de Glymes-Berghes (died 1564) was 87th Prince-bishop of Liège (1557–1563). He was forced to resign the see on 30 March 1563, due to insanity, and died in the course of the following year.Alphonse Le Roy, "Berghes (Robe ...

, Gerard of Grœsbeek, and

Ernest of Bavaria Ernest of Bavaria (german: Ernst von Bayern) (17 December 1554 – 17 February 1612) was Prince-elector-archbishop of the Archbishopric of Cologne from 1583 to 1612 as successor of the expelled Gebhard Truchsess von Waldburg. He was also bishop ...

). He thus regularly collaborated with

Laevinus Torrentius Laevinus Torrentius, born Lieven van der Beke (1525–1595), was the second bishop of Antwerp. Career He studied philosophy and law at Leuven University and then at the University of Bologna The University of Bologna ( it, Alma Mater Stud ...

who was the

vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pre ...

of the Prince-Bishops until 1586 after which he became

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

of Antwerp.Jeanine Landtsheer, Dirk Sacré, Chris Coppens, ''Justus Lipsius'' (1547-1606)
''een geleerde en zijn europese netwerk : catalogus van de tentoonstellung in de Centrale Bibliotheek te Leuven, 18 oktober-20 december 2006'', Leuven University Press, 2006, p. 226-227 Lampsonius was for a while the teacher of

Otto van Veen Otto van Veen, also known by his Latinized name Otto Venius or Octavius Vaenius (1556 – 6 May 1629), was a painter, draughtsman, and humanist active primarily in Antwerp and Brussels in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He is known for ...

, a painter and humanist who would later be one of the masters of

Peter Paul Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque tradi ...

. He became friends and engaged in intensive correspondence with some of the leading humanists of his time such as

Justus Lipsius Justus Lipsius (Joest Lips or Joost Lips; 18 October 1547 – 23 March 1606) was a Flemish Catholic philologist, philosopher, and humanist. Lipsius wrote a series of works designed to revive ancient Stoicism in a form that would be compatible w ...

, Janus Dousa, Johannes Livineius and Petrus Oranus. He provided the Italian historian

Lodovico Guicciardini Lodovico Guicciardini (19 August 1521 – 22 March 1589) was an Italian writer and merchant from Florence who lived primarily in Antwerp from 1542 or earlier. He was the nephew of historian and diplomat Francesco Guicciardini. ''Description of ...

, then a resident of Flanders, with information for his history of the Low Countries entitled ''Descrittione di Lodovico Guicciardini patritio fiorentino di tutti i Paesi Bassi altrimenti detti Germania inferiore'' (1567; The Description of the Low Countreys). He was a correspondent of the Italian art historian

Giorgio Vasari Giorgio Vasari (, also , ; 30 July 1511 – 27 June 1574) was an Italian Renaissance Master, who worked as a painter, architect, engineer, writer, and historian, who is best known for his work '' The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculp ...

, who relied upon him for his notes about the life and works of the Liège painter

Lambert Lombard Lambert Lombard (c. 1505 – August 1566) was a Renaissance painter, architect and theorist for the Prince-Bishopric of Liège. During his career he worked for Jan Gossaert in Middelburg and trained Frans Floris. Biography Lombard was bor ...

. In one of his letters to Vasari, Lampsonius defended Netherlandish art against some of the disparaging remarks that Vasari had made in his ''

Vite ''The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects'' ( it, Le vite de' più eccellenti pittori, scultori, e architettori), often simply known as ''The Lives'' ( it, Le Vite), is a series of artist biographies written by 16th-ce ...

''. In a letter written to Vasari before the publication of the second edition of the ''Vite'' Lampsonius deplored the poor quality of recent prints of Italian art works, which, according to him, did not fully convey the excellence of the originals. Lampsonius suggested that Northern engravers should collaborate with Italian artists to improve this. He also asked Vasari to include in the revised edition of the ''Vite'' treatises on the three arts of sculpture, painting and architecture, with drawings and information about the secrets of the arts. He further conducted a regular correspondence with

Giulio Clovio Giorgio Giulio Clovio or Juraj Julije Klović (1498 – 5 January 1578) was an illuminator, miniaturist, and painter born in the Kingdom of Croatia, who was mostly active in Renaissance Italy. He is considered the greatest illuminator of the It ...

to whom he proposed a project to engrave Michelangelo's works in a skilful manner so that those who had not visited Rome could appreciate what they looked like.

Portraits of some celebrated artists

In 1572 Lampsonius published under his own name a set of 23 engraved portraits of artists from the Low Countries under the title ''Pictorum aliquot celebrium Germaniae inferioris effigies'' (literal translation: ''Effigies of some celebrated painters of Lower Germany''). Lampsonius provided poems in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

to accompany the individual portraits. This work was under preparation by the leading Antwerp publisher Hieronymous Cock who died before it was completed. It was then published by Cock's widow Volcxken Dierix who continued the publishing business after her husband's death. The artists included in the book are (in this order):

Hubert van Eyck Hubert van Eyck () or Huybrecht van Eyck ( – 18 September 1426) was an Early Netherlandish painter and older brother of Jan van Eyck, as well as Lambert and Margareta, also painters. The absence of any single work that he can clearly be said to ...

, Jan van Eyck,

Hieronymus Bosch Hieronymus Bosch (, ; born Jheronimus van Aken ; – 9 August 1516) was a Dutch/ Netherlandish painter from Brabant. He is one of the most notable representatives of the Early Netherlandish painting school. His work, generally oil on o ...

Rogier van der Weyden Rogier van der Weyden () or Roger de la Pasture (1399 or 140018 June 1464) was an early Netherlandish painter whose surviving works consist mainly of religious triptychs, altarpieces, and commissioned single and diptych portraits. He was highly ...

Dirk Bouts Dieric Bouts (born c. 1415 – 6 May 1475) was an Early Netherlandish painter. Bouts may have studied under Rogier van der Weyden, and his work was influenced by van der Weyden and Jan van Eyck. He worked in Leuven from 1457 (or possibly earlie ...

Bernard van Orley Bernard van Orley (between 1487 and 1491 – 6 January 1541), also called Barend or Barent van Orley, Bernaert van Orley or Barend van Brussel, was a versatile Flemish artist and representative of Dutch and Flemish Renaissance painting, who ...

Jan Mabuse Jan Gossaert (c. 1478 – 1 October 1532) was a French-speaking painter from the Low Countries also known as Jan Mabuse (the name he adopted from his birthplace, Maubeuge) or Jennyn van Hennegouwe ( Hainaut), as he called himself when he matri ...

Joachim Patinir Joachim Patinir, also called Patenier (c. 1480 – 5 October 1524), was a Flemish Renaissance painter of history and landscape subjects. He was Flemish, from the area of modern Wallonia, but worked in Antwerp, then the centre of the art market ...

Quentin Matsys Quentin Matsys ( nl, Quinten Matsijs) (1466–1530) was a Flemish painter in the Early Netherlandish tradition. He was born in Leuven. There is a tradition alleging that he was trained as an ironsmith before becoming a painter. Matsys was activ ...

, Lucas van Leyden,

Jan van Amstel Jan van Amstel, or Jan de Hollander, (c. 1500 – c. 1542) was a Dutch Northern Renaissance painter. Jan van Amstel was born in Amsterdam. In or before 1528, van Amstel moved to Antwerp; in that year he joined the city's Guild of Saint Luke ...

Joos van Cleve Joos van Cleve (; also Joos van der Beke; c. 1485–1490 – 1540/1541) was a leading painter active in Antwerp from his arrival there around 1511 until his death in 1540 or 1541. Within Dutch and Flemish Renaissance painting, he combines the tr ...

Matthys Cock Matthys Cock or Matthijs Wellens de Cock (c. 1505 – 1548) was a Flemish landscape painter and draughtsman. He is known for his landscapes, marine art and architectural drawings.Herri met de Bles Herri met de Bles, also known as Henri Blès, Herri de Dinant, Herry de Patinir, and ''il Civetta'' (c. 1490 – after 1566), was a Flemish Northern Renaissance and Mannerist landscape painter, native of Bouvignes or Dinant (both in present-day ...

Jan Cornelisz Vermeyen Jan Cornelisz Vermeyen, or Jan Mayo, or Barbalonga (c. 1504 – 1559) was a Dutch Northern Renaissance painter. Biography Based on his will, rediscovered in 1998, Vermeyen was born in Beverwijk in 1504 (possibly 1503 or 1505). According to ...

Pieter Coecke van Aelst Pieter Coecke van Aelst or Pieter Coecke van Aelst the Elder ( Aalst, 14 August 1502 – Brussels, 6 December 1550) was a Flemish painter, sculptor, architect, author and designer of woodcuts, goldsmith's work, stained glass and tapestries.

Jan van Scorel Jan van Scorel (1 August 1495 – 6 December 1562) was a Dutch painter, who played a leading role in introducing aspects of Italian Renaissance painting into Dutch and Flemish Renaissance painting. He was one of the early painters of the Ro ...

, Lambert Lombard, Pieter Bruegel the Elder,

Willem Key Willem Adriaensz Key (1516 – 5 June 1568) was a Flemish Renaissance painter. Biography Key was born in Breda, Netherlands. In 1529 he was known to be a pupil of Pieter Coecke van Aelst in Antwerp. Later, together with Frans Floris, h ...

Lucas Gassel Lucas Gassel or Lucas van Gassel ( Deurne, Netherlands, c. 1485 – Brussels, 1568 or 1569)Lucas Gassel
at the

Frans Floris Frans Floris, Frans Floris the Elder or Frans Floris de Vriendt (17 April 15191 October 1570) was a Flemish painter, draughtsman, print artist and tapestry designer. He is mainly known for his history paintings, allegorical scenes and portraits.< ...

, and Hieronymus Cock.Pictorum aliquot celebrium Germaniae inferioris
1572 edition in the

Courtauld Institute of Art The Courtauld Institute of Art (), commonly referred to as The Courtauld, is a self-governing college of the University of London specialising in the study of the history of art and conservation. It is among the most prestigious specialist coll ...

Since all the depicted artists were dead at the time of publication, Lampsonius included a dedicatory poem that qualified the work as a whole as an act of mourning and readers of the book are asked to ‘be the companions’ of the late Hieronymous Cock and his predecessors in a funeral procession. The book includes a poem by Lampsonius dedicated to the memory of Hieronymus Cock and applauding the work of his widow. The portraits and texts present an honour roll of the earlier generations of Netherlandish artists. Their publication thus contributed to the formation of a canon of famous Netherlandish painters, which was well underway even before

Karel van Mander Karel van Mander (I) or Carel van Mander I (May 1548 – 2 September 1606) was a Flemish painter, poet, art historian and art theoretician, who established himself in the Dutch Republic in the latter part of his life. He is mainly remembere ...

published his biographies of early and contemporary Netherlandish artists in his

Schilder-boeck or is a book written by the Flemish writer and painter Karel van Mander first published in 1604 in Haarlem in the Dutch Republic, where van Mander resided. The book is written in 17th-century Dutch and its title is commonly translated into En ...

of 1604.Jeffrey Chipps Smith, 'Historians of Northern European Art: From Johann Neudörfer and Karel van Mander to the Rembrandt Research Project', in: Babette Bohn, James M. Saslow, ''A Companion to Renaissance and Baroque Art'', John Wiley & Sons, 2 Jan, 2012, p. 509 Lampsonius thus attempted to place Netherlandish art on the same level as Italian art, which he admired. He seems, however, to have resigned himself tacitly to the difference in rank between Italian and Netherlandish art. He writes in his poem on the painter

that 'The Netherlanders are particularly praised as good painters of landscapes, the Italians of people or gods. No wonder: it stands to reason that the proverb says that the Italian has his brain in his head and the Netherlander in his diligent hand.' The quality of the 23 prints was outstanding as they had been made by some of the leading engravers of the time such as Jan Wierix,

Adriaen Collaert Adriaen Collaert (c. 1560 – 29 June 1618) was a Flemish designer and engraver. Biography The estimated year of his birth at Antwerp is between 1555 and 1565.

and

Cornelis Cort Cornelis Cort (c. 1533 – c. 17 March 1578) was a Dutch engraver and draughtsman. He spent the last 12 years of his life in Italy, where he was known as ''Cornelio Fiammingo''. Biography Born in Hoorn or Edam, Cort may have been a pupil of ...

. The portraits are rendered with a metallic sharpness and brilliance. The prints constitute a visually harmonious series.

Hendrik Hondius I Hendrik Hondius I (born Hendrik de Hondt; 9 June 1573 – ) was a Flemish-born and trained engraver, cartographer, and publisher who settled in the Dutch Republic in 1597. Life He was born as the son of Guillam (Willem) de Hondt, a philo ...

published in 1610 a book with almost the same title ('Pictorum aliquot celebrium, præcipué Germaniæ Inferioris', in English: 'Effigies of some celebrated painters, chiefly of Lower Germany') that contained 69 engraved portraits of painters. Hondius' work included in its first part reworked versions of 22 of the portraits of the 1572 publication. The portrait of Hieronymus Cock (often numbered 23) was not included by Hondius maybe because the likeness was made after death, rather than drawn "ad vivum" or after the living model as was the case for the other portraits.Portrait of Hieronymus Cock
in the effigies, Courtauld Institute of Art

Other writings

Lampsonius wrote numerous poems and

epigrams An epigram is a brief, interesting, memorable, and sometimes surprising or satirical statement. The word is derived from the Greek "inscription" from "to write on, to inscribe", and the literary device has been employed for over two millen ...

in Latin. Lampsonius also was the author of ''Lamberti Lombardi Apvd Ebvrones Pictoris Celeberrimi Vita'' (The Life of Lambert Lombard), a biography of his art teacher Lambert Lombard (1565). This was the first biography about a Northern artist ever published. In the book, Lampsonius defended Lombard's art in the book and pronounced Lombard to be the equal of Vasari as a painter.Amy Golahny, 'Italian Art and the North: Exchanges, Critical Reception, and Identity, 1400–1700', in: Babette Bohn, James M. Saslow, ''A Companion to Renaissance and Baroque Art'', John Wiley & Sons, 2 Jan, 2012, p. 122 Lampsonius noted that Lambert worked more for love of art than for money, an idea promoted in ancient times by

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic ' ...

and shared by Lampsonius.

Painting

Lampsonius dedicated himself for some time successfully to the art of painting. He was assisted in his efforts by Lambert Lombard, the eminent Renaissance painter of Liège. Lampsonius' only known extant painting is a

Crucifixion Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the victim is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross or beam and left to hang until eventual death from exhaustion and asphyxiation. It was used as a punishment by the Persians, Carthagi ...

scene dated 1576.

Notes

References

*Morford, Mark. "''Theatrum Hodiernae Vitae'': Lipsius, Vaenius, and the Rebellion of Civilis." ''Recreating Ancient History: Episodes from the Greek and Roman Past and Literatures of the Early Modern Period.'' Eds. Karl Enekel, Jan L. de Jong, Jeanine De Landtsheer. Leiden: Brill Academic Publishers, 2001. *Stechow, Wolfgang. ''Northern Renaissance Art, 1400-1600: Sources and Documents''. Evanston: Northwestern University Press, 1989.

External links

*
The Life of Lambert Lombard by Domenicus Lampsonius, original latin version (1565) on Google Books

Pictorum aliquot celebrium Germaniae inferioris effigies. Eorum nempè qui vita functi hac praestantiss. arte immortalitatis nomen sibi compararunt. Original latin version (1572) on Google Books
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lampsonius 1532 births 1599 deaths Flemish Renaissance humanists Flemish Renaissance painters