{{Short description, 17th-century Dutch artistic movement
The Fijnschilders (literally "fine-painters"), also called the Leiden Fijnschilders ('Leidse Fijnschilders'), were
Dutch Golden Age painter
Dutch Golden Age painting is the painting of the Dutch Golden Age, a period in Dutch history roughly spanning the 17th century, during and after the later part of the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648) for Dutch independence.
The new Dutch Republi ...
s who, from about 1630 to 1710, strove to create as natural a reproduction of reality as possible in their meticulously executed, often small-scale works.
Although in the seventeenth century, as in modern
Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
, the term ''fijnschilder'' was used to differentiate between a painter practicing classic techniques and one who, for instance, is a house painter, in the nineteenth century it became a label for artists like
Gerrit Dou
Gerrit Dou (7 April 1613 – 9 February 1675), also known as Gerard Douw or Dow, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, whose small, highly polished paintings are typical of the Leiden fijnschilders. He specialised in genre scenes and is noted for his ...
and his followers in
Leiden
Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wi ...
Adriaen van der Werff
Adriaen van der Werff (21 January 1659 – 12 November 1722) was a Dutch painter of portraits and erotic, devotional and mythological scenes. His brother, Pieter van der Werff (1661–1722), was his principal pupil and assistant.
Life
At the ag ...
—all among the most successful of the Dutch Baroque—became identifiable by their "fine" manner, exquisite techniques, and extreme attention to detail resulting in works with smooth surfaces completely lacking
painterly
Painterliness is a concept based on ''german: malerisch'' ('painterly'), a word popularized by Swiss art historian Heinrich Wölfflin (1864–1945) to help focus, enrich and standardize the terms being used by art historians of his time to cha ...
brush strokes. The application of paint contrasts with the textures and style of other Dutch painters, such as Frans Hals and Dou's teacher
Rembrandt van Rijn
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consi ...
. In this way they have more in common with earlier traditions in Netherlandish painting, such as the detailed richness of Jan van Eyck. Other artists working in the style include
Godfried Schalcken
Godfried Schalcken (1643 – 16 November 1706) was a Dutch genre and portrait painter. He was noted for his mastery in reproducing the effect of candlelight, and painted in the exquisite and highly polished manner of the Leiden fijnschilders.
L ...
,
Quirijn van Brekelenkam
Quirijn or Quiringh Gerritsz van Brekelenkam (1622/29, Zwammerdam – 1669/79, Leiden),entry in the
,
Pieter Leermans
Pieter Leermans (c. 1635, Leiden – 1706), was a Dutch Golden Age painter.
Biography
According to the Netherlands Institute for Art History he was a portrait painter of historical allegories.Gabriel Metsu
In Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam), Gabriel (); Greek: grc, Γαβριήλ, translit=Gabriḗl, label=none; Latin: ''Gabriel''; Coptic: cop, Ⲅⲁⲃⲣⲓⲏⲗ, translit=Gabriêl, label=none; Amharic: am, ገብር ...
.
The fijnschilders are best known for
genre scenes
Genre art is the pictorial representation in any of various media of scenes or events from everyday life, such as markets, domestic settings, interiors, parties, inn scenes, work, and street scenes. Such representations (also called genre works, ...
showing everyday life and activities, candle-lit nocturnal subjects, and ''
trompe-l'œil
''Trompe-l'œil'' ( , ; ) is an artistic term for the highly realistic optical illusion of three-dimensional space and objects on a two-dimensional surface. ''Trompe l'oeil'', which is most often associated with painting, tricks the viewer into ...
'' "niche" paintings.
Image:Gerrit_Dou_selfport.jpg, Gerrit Dou, ''Self portrait'', c. 1650
Image:Frans van Mieris (I) - Duet - WGA15629.jpg, Frans van Mieris, ''The Duet'', 1658
Image:Godfried Schalcken Kunstbetrachtung.jpg,
Godfried Schalcken
Godfried Schalcken (1643 – 16 November 1706) was a Dutch genre and portrait painter. He was noted for his mastery in reproducing the effect of candlelight, and painted in the exquisite and highly polished manner of the Leiden fijnschilders.
L ...
, ''Two men examining a sculpture by candlelight''
References
* Leidse fijnschilders: van Gerrit Dou tot Frans van Mieris de Jonge 1630-1760, Leiden,
Stedelijk Museum de Lakenhal
Museum De Lakenhal is the city museum of fine art and history in Leiden, Netherlands. One highlight is its collection of fijnschilder paintings from the Dutch Golden Age. Just like the city, the museum combines a classical appearance with a contemp ...