![Anthony van Dyck - Portrait of Frans Francken II (6th state)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5b/Anthony_van_Dyck_-_Portrait_of_Frans_Francken_II_%286th_state%29.jpg)
Frans Francken the Younger (1581 in
Antwerp
Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504, , 1581 – 6 May 1642, in Antwerp) 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; ...
painter
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...
who created altarpieces and furniture panels and gained his reputation chiefly through his small and delicate cabinet pictures with historical, mythological or allegorical themes. He is the best-known and most prolific member of the large
Francken
The Francken family was a family of artists the members of which were mainly active in Antwerp in the 16th and 17th centuries. Many of the members over three generations had the same first names Frans, Hieronymus and Ambrosius. While this may at ...
family of artists.
[Frans Francken the Younger]
at the J. Paul Getty Museum Franckenplayed an important role in the development of Flemish art in the first half of the 17th century through his innovations in many genres including
genre painting
Genre painting (or petit genre), a form of genre art, depicts aspects of everyday life by portraying ordinary people engaged in common activities. One common definition of a genre scene is that it shows figures to whom no identity can be attached ...
and his introduction of new subject matter. He was a frequent collaborator of leading Antwerp painters of his time.
[Ursula Härting. "Francken."]
Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press. Web. 27 February 2014
Life
Frans Francken the Younger was born in Antwerp as the son of
Frans Francken the Elder
Frans Francken I or Frans Francken the Elder (1542, Herentals – 1616, Antwerp) was a Flemish painter who was one of the principal painters in Antwerp during the Counter-Reformation.[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 one of the most important creators of altar pieces of his time in Flanders. Frans Francken the Younger trained with his father Frans the Elder.
[Frans Francken (II)]
at the Netherlands Institute for Art History
The Netherlands Institute for Art History or RKD (Dutch: RKD-Nederlands Instituut voor Kunstgeschiedenis), previously Rijksbureau voor Kunsthistorische Documentatie (RKD), is located in The Hague and is home to the largest art history center i ...
Frans, together with his brother
Hieronymus Francken II
Hieronymus Francken the Younger or Hieronymus II (Antwerp, 1578 – Antwerp, 1623) was a Flemish painter and one of the most prominent members of the large Francken family of artists. Along with his brother Frans Francken II he played an imp ...
, may also have received additional training in the workshop of their uncle
Hieronymus Francken I
Hieronymus Francken I or Hieronymus Francken the Elder (ca. 1540, Herentals–1610, Paris) was a Flemish painter and an important member of the Francken family of artists. After training in Antwerp, he was mainly active in France, where he ...
in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
.
![Frans Francken II - Troonsafstand Karel V](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/86/Frans_Francken_II_-_Troonsafstand_Karel_V.jpg)
Frans Francken the Younger likely first worked in the family workshop before he became an independent master in the Antwerp
Guild of Saint Luke
The Guild of Saint Luke was the most common name for a city guild for painters and other artists in early modern Europe, especially in the Low Countries. They were named in honor of the Evangelist Luke, the patron saint of artists, who was ide ...
in 1605. He was deacon of the Guild in 1616.
[ Francken's talent was recognised from an early age.][''Frans Francken II'' in: Frans Jozef Peter Van den Branden, ''Geschiedenis der Antwerpsche schilderschool'', Antwerpen, 1883, pp. 1615–1619 ] He became a very successful artist and operated a large workshop which made many copies of his original compositions. Already in 1607 he was able to buy a house in the city centre where he established his residence and workshop.
On 8 November 1607 Francken married Elisabeth Plaquet 'with the special permission of the bishop'. This may have had something to do with the fact that their firstborn son was born before the end of 1607. The son was given the same name as his father and grandfather. He would be known as Frans III and as an artist he earned himself later the nickname the ''Rubense Francken'' (the ''Rubensian Francken''). Three further boys and five girls were born to the Francken couple. One of them, Hieronymus
Hieronymus, in English pronounced or , is the Latin form of the Ancient Greek name (Hierṓnymos), meaning "with a sacred name". It corresponds to the English given name Jerome.
Variants
* Albanian: Jeronimi
* Arabic: جيروم (Jerome)
* Basqu ...
, would also become a painter.[
Frans Francken the Younger's pupils included Daniel Hagens (1616/17), the Monogrammist N.F., his brother Hieronymus II and his son Frans III.][
]
Work
General
Frans Francken the Younger was a versatile artist who practised in many genres and introduced new subjects into Flemish art. Many of his works are small historical, allegorical and biblical cabinet painting
A cabinet painting (or "cabinet picture") is a small painting, typically no larger than two feet (0.6 meters) in either dimension, but often much smaller. The term is especially used for paintings that show full-length figures or landscapes at a s ...
s with the focus on figures. He also invented or popularized several new themes that became popular in Flemish painting, such as 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, ...
populated by monkeys (also referred to as ''singerie
''Singerie'' is the name given to a visual arts genre depicting monkeys imitating human behavior, often fashionably attired, intended as a diverting sight, always with a gentle cast of mild satire. The term is derived from the French word for "M ...
s)'' and '' Kunstkammer'' or gallery paintings displaying a wealth of natural and artistic treasures against a neutral wall. Frans Francken the Younger introduced many other unusual themes that later became popular, such as the 'Triumphal Procession of Amphitrite' and 'Croesus and Solon'.[ Francken also made a series of paintings depicting witches and witchcraft, including portrayals of witches' sabbats.
Frans Francken the Younger signed his works with 'de jonge Frans Francken' ('the young Frans Francken') before the death of his father in 1616. From the late 1620s he used the signature 'de oude Fr. Francken' ('the old Fr. Francken'), to distinguish himself from his son Frans III. His father had also started signing his paintings with 'den oude Frans Francken' ('the old Frans Francken') after Frans Francken the Younger had become active as an artist.][
His paintings are held by most major museums in Europe.][
]
Collaborations
Francken was particularly skilled in painting the human figure, a fact which is confirmed on some of the portraits of the artist that were etched by Anthony van Dyck
Sir Anthony van Dyck (, many variant spellings; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Brabantian Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Southern Netherlands and Italy.
The seventh c ...
and carry the Latin inscription: 'ANTVERIÆ PICTOR HVMANARVM FIGVRARVM' (Figure painter of Antwerp). He was frequently invited to contribute figures in compositions by other artists, such as the landscape artists Tobias Verhaecht
Tobias Verhaecht (1561–1631) was a painter from Antwerp in the Duchy of Brabant who primarily painted landscapes. His style was indebted to the mannerist world landscape developed by artists like Joachim Patinir and Pieter Bruegel the Elder. He ...
, Abraham Govaerts
Abraham Govaerts (1589 – 9 September 1626) was a Flemish painter who specialized in small cabinet-sized forest landscapes in the manner of Jan Brueghel the Elder and Gillis van Coninxloo. He was a regular collaborator with other artists who w ...
and Joos de Momper
Joos de Momper the Younger or Joost de Momper the Younger (1564February5, 1635) was a Flemish landscape painter active in Antwerp between the late 16th century and the early 17th century. Brueghel's influence is clearly evident in many of de Momp ...
, the architectural painters Pieter Neeffs the Elder, Pieter Neeffs the Younger, Hendrik van Steenwijk I
Hendrik van Steenwijck I (also ''Steenwyck'', ''Steenwijk'') (''c''. 1550 – buried 1 September 1603[Hendrik ...](_blank)
, Paul Vredeman de Vries
Paul Vredeman de Vries ( Antwerp, 1567 – Amsterdam, 1617), was a Flemish painter and draughtsman who specialised in architectural paintings and, in particular, church interiors.
Life
He was a son of the Dutch-born architect, painter and engin ...
and Bartholomeus van Bassen
Bartholomeus Corneliszoon van Bassen (1590–1652) was a Dutch Golden Age painter and architect.
Biography
Van Bassen was the illegitimate son of Cornelis van Bassen and the grandson of Bartholt Ernst van Bassen, who both lived and died in T ...
and flower painters such as Jan Brueghel the Elder
Jan Brueghel (also Bruegel or Breughel) the Elder (, ; ; 1568 – 13 January 1625) was a Flemish painter and draughtsman. He was the son of the eminent Flemish Renaissance painter Pieter Bruegel the Elder. A close friend and frequent collaborato ...
and Andries Daniels
Andries Daniels[Emperor Charles V
Charles V, french: Charles Quint, it, Carlo V, nl, Karel V, ca, Carles V, la, Carolus V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain ( Castile and Aragon) ...]
in Brussels'' (Rijksmuseum
The Rijksmuseum () is the national museum of the Netherlands dedicated to Dutch arts and history and is located in Amsterdam. The museum is located at the Museum Square in the borough of Amsterdam South, close to the Van Gogh Museum, the St ...
). The composition is an allegorical representation of the abdication
Abdication is the act of formally relinquishing monarchical authority. Abdications have played various roles in the succession procedures of monarchies. While some cultures have viewed abdication as an extreme abandonment of duty, in other societ ...
of Emperor Charles V
Charles V, french: Charles Quint, it, Carlo V, nl, Karel V, ca, Carles V, la, Carolus V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain ( Castile and Aragon) ...
in Brussels. Charles V who is dividing his empire after a life of continuous warfare and ill health is seated on his throne flanked by his successors Ferdinand I and Philip II Philip II may refer to:
* Philip II of Macedon (382–336 BC)
* Philip II (emperor) (238–249), Roman emperor
* Philip II, Prince of Taranto (1329–1374)
* Philip II, Duke of Burgundy (1342–1404)
* Philip II, Duke of Savoy (1438-1497)
* Philip ...
. In front of Philip the personifications of the territories of the Empire with their banners are kneeling down. In the foreground the personifications of the continents America, Africa, Europe and Asia are offering gifts. On the left Neptune
Neptune is the eighth planet from the Sun and the farthest known planet in the Solar System. It is the fourth-largest planet in the Solar System by diameter, the third-most-massive planet, and the densest giant planet. It is 17 times ...
is riding his seahorse-drawn triumphal chariot, accompanied by mermen, mermaids and tritons. On the chariot are visible a globe and the two columns with a banderole inscribed with Plus Ultra
''Plus ultra'' (, , en, "Further beyond") is a Latin phrase and the national motto of Spain. A reversal of the original phrase ''non plus ultra'' ("Nothing further beyond"), said to have been inscribed as a warning on the Pillars of Herc ...
.
Another allegorical painting is the composition ''Mankind's Eternal Dilemma: The Choice Between Virtue and Vice'' (on loan to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
The Museum of Fine Arts (often abbreviated as MFA Boston or MFA) is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the 20th-largest art museum in the world, measured by public gallery area. It contains 8,161 paintings and more than 450,000 works ...
. This work is believed to have been painted at the occasion of a wedding and mixes mythological and Christian symbolism. It represents the eternal choice of mankind between virtue and vice and depicts the three regions of heaven, earth and hell.
Singeries
Frans Francken contributed to the development of the genre of the 'monkey scene', also called 'singerie' (a word, which in French means a 'comical grimace, behaviour or trick'). Comical scenes with monkeys appearing in human attire and a human environment are a pictorial genre that was initiated in Flemish painting in the 16th century and was subsequently further developed in the 17th century.
The Flemish engraver Pieter van der Borcht introduced the singerie as an independent theme around 1575 in a series of prints, which are strongly embedded in the artistic tradition of Pieter Bruegel the Elder
Pieter Bruegel (also Brueghel or Breughel) the Elder (, ; ; – 9 September 1569) was the most significant artist of Dutch and Flemish Renaissance painting, a painter and printmaker, known for his landscapes and peasant scenes (so-called genr ...
. These prints were widely disseminated and the theme was then picked up by other Flemish artists. The first one to do so was Frans Francken the Younger who played an important role in the development of the genre. Other Antwerp artists subsequently contributing to the genre were Jan Brueghel the Elder
Jan Brueghel (also Bruegel or Breughel) the Elder (, ; ; 1568 – 13 January 1625) was a Flemish painter and draughtsman. He was the son of the eminent Flemish Renaissance painter Pieter Bruegel the Elder. A close friend and frequent collaborato ...
and the Younger, Sebastiaen Vrancx
Sebastiaen Vrancx, Sebastiaan Vrancx or Sebastian Vranckx (; 22 January 1573 – 19 May 1647) was a Flemish Baroque painter, draughtsman and designer of prints who is mainly known for his battle scenes, a genre that he pioneered in Netherlandish ...
and Jan van Kessel the Elder
Jan van Kessel the Elder or Jan van Kessel (I) (baptized 5 April 1626, Antwerp – 17 April 1679, Antwerp) was a Flemish painter active in Antwerp in the mid 17th century. A versatile artist he practised in many genres including studies of i ...
. David Teniers the Younger
David Teniers the Younger or David Teniers II (bapt. 15 December 1610 – 25 April 1690) was a Flemish Baroque painter, printmaker, draughtsman, miniaturist painter, staffage painter, copyist and art curator. He was an extremely versatile arti ...
became the principal practitioner of the genre and developed it further with his younger brother Abraham Teniers
Abraham Teniers (1 March 1629 – 26 September 1670) was a Flemish painter and engraver who specialized in genre paintings of villages, inns and monkey scenes. He was a member of artist family Teniers which came to prominence in the 17th century ...
. Later in the 17th century Nicolaes van Verendael
Nicolaes van Verendael or Nicolaes van Veerendael (1640 in Antwerp – 1691 in Antwerp) was a Flemish
Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Du ...
started to paint these 'monkey scenes' as well.
Gallery paintings
Frans Francken the Younger and Jan Brueghel the Elder were the first artists to create paintings of art and curiosity collections in the 1620s, such as '' A Cabinet of Curiosities''.[ Gallery paintings depict large rooms in which many paintings and other precious items are displayed in elegant surroundings. The earliest works in this genre depicted art objects together with other items such as scientific instruments or peculiar natural specimens. Some gallery paintings include portraits of the owners or collectors of the art objects or artists at work.
The paintings are heavy with symbolism and allegory and are a reflection of the intellectual preoccupations of the age, including the cultivation of personal virtue and the importance of connoisseurship.][Marr, Alexander (2010) 'The Flemish 'Pictures of Collections' Genre: An Overview', Intellectual History Review, 20: 1, 5–25] The genre became immediately quite popular and was followed by other artists such as Jan Brueghel the Younger, Cornelis de Baellieur
Cornelis de Baellieur (1607, Antwerp – 1671, Antwerp), was a Flemish Baroque painter.
Biography
According to the RKD he was a pupil of Anthonis Liesaert and is known for paintings of art galleries such as '' Interior of an Art Gallery''. , Hans Jordaens
Hans Jordaens the Elder (1555–1630), was a Flemish Baroque painter whose religious works are often confused with that of other painters with the same name.
Biography
He was born in Antwerp, but after the siege of Antwerp, his family moved to ...
, David Teniers the Younger
David Teniers the Younger or David Teniers II (bapt. 15 December 1610 – 25 April 1690) was a Flemish Baroque painter, printmaker, draughtsman, miniaturist painter, staffage painter, copyist and art curator. He was an extremely versatile arti ...
, Gillis van Tilborch
Gillis van Tilborgh or Gillis van Tilborch (''c''. 1625 – ''c''. 1678) was a Flemish painter who worked in various genres including portraits, 'low-life' and elegant genre paintings and paintings of picture galleries. He became the keeper of ...
and Hieronymus Janssens
Hieronymus Janssens or Jeroom Janssens (nicknamed ''Den danser'') (1624, Antwerp – 1693, Antwerp) was a Flemish genre painter known for his compositions depicting elegant companies engaging in dance, music or play, which were of influence on the ...
.
Garland paintings
Frans Francken often collaborated with still life specialists such as Andries Daniels, Jan Brueghel the Elder and Younger and Philips de Marlier
Philips de Marlier (nickname ''Dicke Lup'') (c. 1600 – 1668) was a Flemish Baroque painter and copyist mainly known for his still lifes of flowers and garland paintings.
Life
He was probably born in Antwerp between 1595 and 1605. He was registe ...
in the production of garland paintings. Garland paintings are a special type of still life developed in Antwerp by artists such as Jan Brueghel the Elder, Hendrick van Balen
Hendrick van Balen or Hendrick van Balen I (c. 1573–1575 in Antwerp – 17 July 1632 in Antwerp) was a Flemish Baroque painter and stained glass designer. Hendrick van Balen specialised in small cabinet pictures often painted on a copper ...
, Andries Daniels, 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 traditio ...
and Daniel Seghers
Daniël Seghers or Daniel Seghers (3 December 1590 – 2 November 1661) was a Flemish Jesuit brother and painter who specialized in flower still lifes. He is particularly well known for his contributions to the genre of flower garland painting.I ...
. They typically show a flower garland around a devotional image or portrait. This genre was inspired by the cult of veneration and devotion to Mary
Mary may refer to:
People
* Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name)
Religious contexts
* New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below
* Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...
prevalent at the Habsburg
The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
court (then the rulers over the Southern Netherlands) and in Antwerp generally.
Garland paintings were usually collaborations between a still life and a figure painter. In his collaborations on garland paintings Francken would paint the central figure or representation while the still life painter would create the garland. Together with Andries Daniels, Frans Francken further developed the genre of garland paintings, creating many special forms, among them garlands around medallions with the decades of the rosary.[Susan Merriam, ''Seventeenth-Century Flemish Garland Paintings. Still Life, Vision and the Devotional Image'', Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2012]
Religious works
Later in his life Francken also painted large altarpiece
An altarpiece is an artwork such as a painting, sculpture or relief representing a religious subject made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting o ...
s. In these works he remained immune to the influence of Rubens, who had such a strong appeal on Flemish artists of that time. His religious works are more indebted to the work of his father.[
]
Among his religiously themed works of particular note are the unusual and stylistically 'reactionary' paintings of biblical scenes, which are framed on all sides by smaller scenes in grisaille
Grisaille ( or ; french: grisaille, lit=greyed , from ''gris'' 'grey') is a painting executed entirely in shades of grey or of another neutral greyish colour. It is particularly used in large decorative schemes in imitation of sculpture. Many g ...
. The grisaille frame echoes the Renaissance ecclesiastical portal. Each grisaille scene has its own naturalistic perspective and as a result the compositions provide an odd mixture of three-dimensional naturalism and archaic flatness. Francken used this archaizing technique into the 1620s. This style was possibly invented in the 16th century by the Flemish painter Gillis Mostaert
Gillis Mostaert the Elder (27 or 28 November 1528 – 28 December 1598) was a Flemish Renaissance painter and draughtsman active in Antwerp in the second half of the 16th century. and some works of Mostaert in this style have been erroneously attributed to Frans Francken.[Carl Van de Velde and James Snyder. "Mostaert: (2) Gillis Mostaert", Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press. Web. 23 March 2015]
An example of one of these works is '' The story of the prodigal son'' (Rijksmuseum
The Rijksmuseum () is the national museum of the Netherlands dedicated to Dutch arts and history and is located in Amsterdam. The museum is located at the Museum Square in the borough of Amsterdam South, close to the Van Gogh Museum, the St ...
, Amsterdam). The panel shows various scenes from the Parable of the Prodigal Son
The Parable of the Prodigal Son (also known as the parable of the Two Brothers, Lost Son, Loving Father, or of the Forgiving Father) is one of the parables of Jesus Christ in the Bible, appearing in Luke 15:11–32. Jesus shares the parable with ...
from the Christian bible. The parable recounts the story of a father with two sons. The younger son asks for his inheritance and after wasting his fortune (the word " prodigal" means "wastefully extravagant"), becomes destitute and has to live in squalor. He returns home with the intention of begging his father to make him one of his hired servants. His father welcomes him back and celebrates his return but the older son refuses to participate. In the centre of the composition Francken depicts the scene of the prodigal son during his wild, high-living days in which he squandered his inheritance. Surrounding this central scene are depicted other scenes of the story in smaller scale and in grisaille.
Family tree
Notes
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Francken, Frans 2
Flemish Baroque painters
Flemish history painters
Flemish genre painters
Artists from Antwerp
1581 births
1642 deaths
Frans 2