François Duchatel or du Chastel (1616/1625–1679/1694) was a Flemish painter who worked in Brussels and possibly also in Paris. He is known for his portraits, including of children and groups and

genre paintings 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 ...

, including of peasant subjects, tavern interiors and guardroom scenes.François Duchatel
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 ...

He also painted a few large views of historical events and religious scenes.François Duchatel, ''Charles V after his abdication embarking on a ship bound for Spain in the port of Vlissingen, Zeeland''
at Lawrence Steigrad Fine Arts

Life

Little is known about his life, He was likely born in Brussels between 1616 and 1625. Some sources report that he initially served in the cavalry but let this profession after he witnessed the death of his best friend at his side during a battle.Ad. Siret, ''Duchatel, François'' in: Biographie nationale de Belgique, Volume 6, p. 224-227 It is only then at the age of 27 that he chose the career of an artist. It was traditionally believed that he was a pupil of

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 ...

likely because his paintings of village feasts show some ressamblance with works of that master. There are no records that corroborate such an apprenticeship.François Duchatel, ''Portrait de la famille Janssens''
at Artcurial He is also mentioned as a pupil of the Antwerp painter

Gaspar de Crayer Gaspar de Crayer or Jasper de CrayerName variations: Caspar de Crayer and Gaspard de Crayer (18 November 1584 – 27 January 1669) was a Flemish painter known for his many Counter-Reformation altarpieces and portraits. He was a court paint ...

, a native of Antwerp who had moved to Brussels in the early 17th century where he had become a member of the local

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 1607.Hans Vlieghe. "Crayer, Gaspar de." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, Web 16 May 2020. De Crayer was known for his

Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also called the Catholic Reformation () or the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to the Protestant Reformation. It began with the Council of Trent (1545–1563) a ...

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 and portraits. In 1649 he married Jeanne Louys with whom he had seven children. Their eldest daughter became a portrait painter and miniaturist who had an international career. She married the Dutch painter

Eglon van der Neer Eglon van der Neer (1635/363 May 1703) was a Dutch painter of historical scenes, portraits and elegant, fashionable people, and later of landscapes. Life Van der Neer was born in Amsterdam and was probably first taught by his father, Aert ...

. In January 1654

and Duchatel sign a contract with the

Averbode Abbey Averbode Abbey is a Premonstratensian abbey situated in Averbode, in the municipality Scherpenheuvel-Zichem ( Flemish Brabant), in the Archdiocese of Mechelen-Brussels in Belgium. It was founded about 1134, suppressed in 1797, and reestablished ...

to paint a ''The confession of faith of St. Norbert and the brothers of his order on the Christmas night of 1120''. Some authors state that Duchatel went to Paris where he worked as assistant to the Flemish battle painter

Adam Frans van der Meulen Adam Frans van der Meulen or Adam-François van der MeulenAdam Frans van der Meulen
at the

Charles Lebrun Charles Le Brun (baptised 24 February 1619 – 12 February 1690) was a French painter, physiognomist, art theorist, and a director of several art schools of his time. As court painter to Louis XIV, who declared him "the greatest French artist of ...

on various royal decoration projects as well on designs for the

Gobelins Manufactory The Gobelins Manufactory () is a historic tapestry factory in Paris, France. It is located at 42 avenue des Gobelins, near Les Gobelins métro station in the 13th arrondissement of Paris. It was originally established on the site as a medieval ...

, the royal tapestry workshop. A number of Flemish artists had been invited to Paris to assist on these projects. There is no documentary evidence that supports Duchatel's presence in Paris or in the entourage of van der Meulen. His pupils included

John Baptist Medina Sir John Baptist Medina or John Baptiste de Medina (1659 – 5 October 1710) was an artist of Flemish people, Flemish-Spanish origin who worked in England and Scotland, mostly as a portrait painter, though he was also the first illustrator o ...

, who became a successful portrait painter in Scotland, and his daughter Marie Duchatel, a miniature painter.

Work

The known work of Duchatel is quite limited. Very few works by the artist are signed and only several others fully documented. Duchatel's portraits are regularly misattributed to other portrait painters of his time such as

Gillis van Tilborgh 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 ...

, Charles Emmanuel Biset,

Jacob van Oost Jacob van Oost or Jacob van Oost the Elder (1603–1671) was a Flemish painter of history paintings and portraits. He was the most important painter of Bruges in the 17th century through his portraits of members of the local bourgeois and hi ...

, and

Gonzales Coques Gonzales Coques (between 1614 and 1618 – 18 April 1684) was a Flemish painter of portraits and history paintings.Veronique van Passel, "Coques ocks; Cox Gonzales onsael; Gonsalo" ''Grove Art Online''. Oxford University Press, ccessed 4 Octob ...

. His small family portraits and

conversation piece A conversation piece refers to a group portrait in a domestic or landscape setting depicting persons chatting or otherwise socializing with each other.Gonzales Coques Gonzales Coques (between 1614 and 1618 – 18 April 1684) was a Flemish painter of portraits and history paintings.Veronique van Passel, "Coques ocks; Cox Gonzales onsael; Gonsalo" ''Grove Art Online''. Oxford University Press, ccessed 4 Octob ...

, an artist who is referred to as the 'little van Dyck' because of his artistic proximity to and emulation with

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 ...

.Ursula Härting, ''Review of Marion Lisken-Pruss, Gonzales Coques (1614-1684). Der kleine Van Dyck (Pictura Nova. Studies in 16th- and 17th- Century Flemish Painting and Drawing XIII). Turnhout: Brepols 2013. 495 pp, 29 col. pls, 120 b&w illus. '', in: historians of netherlandish art, Newsletter and Review of Books Vol. 30, No. 2, November 2013, p. 46-47 He painted genre subjects that were popular in his time. This included guardroom scenes, i.e. paintings that depict officers and soldiers engaged in merrymaking in an interior. These scenes often included mercenaries and prostitutes dividing booty, harassing captives or indulging in other forms of reprehensible activities. This genre was popular in the mid-17th century, particularly in the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands (Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...

. In Flanders there were also a few practitioners of the genre including David Teniers the Younger,

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 ...

Anton Goubau Anton Goubau or Anton Goebouw (1616 in Antwerp – 1698 in Antwerp) was a Flemish Baroque painter. He spent time in Rome where he moved in the circle of the Bamboccianti, Dutch and Flemish genre painters who created small cabinet paintings of th ...

Cornelis Mahu Cornelis Mahu (1613 – 16 November 1689) was a Flemish painter of still lifes, genre paintings and seascapes who showed a very high level of craftsmanship in his compositions. Life Mahu was born in Antwerp. Nothing is known about his training ...

and

Jan Baptist Tijssens the Younger Jan Baptist Tijssens the Younger (1660–1723) was a Flemish painter mainly known for his 'guardroom scenes' and still lifes.Guardroom Scene'' by Duchatel in the Musée Jeanne d'Aboville depicts a guardroom with some soldiers sitting around a round table gambling and smoking. On the right side of the room there are pieces of armour on the floor, a war standard leaning against a wall and various swords hanging from a wall. The armour depicted in the two pictures was already out of date at the time it was painted since metal armours, breast plates and helmets fell out of use from the 1620s. It is possible that in line with the moralizing intent of the genre, the armour is a reference to the

vanitas A ''vanitas'' (Latin for 'vanity') is a symbolic work of art showing the transience of life, the futility of pleasure, and the certainty of death, often contrasting symbols of wealth and symbols of ephemerality and death. Best-known are ''van ...

motif of the transience of power and fame. Some of his most original works depict important historical events on large canvases with many figures. This includes 'The Inauguration of Charles II, King of Spain, as Count of Flanders, in 1666 in Ghent' ) (

Museum of Fine Arts, Ghent The Museum of Fine Arts ( nl, Museum voor Schone Kunsten, MSK) an art museum in Ghent, Belgium, is situated at the East side of the Citadelpark (near the Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst). The museum's collection consists of some 9000 artworks ...

). It is dated 1668. Around the same time

Lucas Vorsterman II Lucas Vorsterman II, Lucas Vorsterman the Younger or Lucas Vorsterman Junior (1624 – between 1666 and 1676) was a Flemish Baroque Engraving, engraver and draughtsman. He produced engravings after the work of the leading painters of the next gene ...

engraved a plate after a design by

Jacob van Werden Jacob van Werden or Jacques van Weerden (''fl'', 1643 – before 20 August 1669), was a Flemish draughtsman, cartographer, Military engineering, military engineer and archer who was active in the Habsburg Netherlands.''The entry into London of the Prince de Ligne in 1660'' (

Château de Belœil The Château de Belœil is a château situated in the municipality of Belœil in the province of Hainaut, Wallonia, Belgium. It serves as the main residence of the princes of Ligne. The château lies in the middle of a Baroque garden designed in ...

), which shows a large view of the arrival of the new Spanish ambassador after

The Restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...

of Charles II of England.Susan Tipton, ''Diplomatie und Zeremoniell in Botschafterbildern von Carlevarijs und Canaletto''
��in RIHA Journal 2010(1), October 2010 The Spanish ambassador, the Prince de Ligne, embarks at Tower Wharf. The artist sketches the scene and his secretary records the events in a diary. Linked to this work is the composition ''Charles II receives the Spanish Ambassador, Claude-Lamoral, Prince de Ligne, in 1660'', which is also attributed to Duchatel. It shows the ceremony three days after the ambassador's arrival in London when he presents his credentials to Charles II at Whitehall. The ambassador wears a dress heavy with embroidery. The followers in his suite are dressed in flame coloured livery with yellow and silver trimmings and hats with feathers. King Charles II stands on a dais with a gold-trimmed red chair of state behind him to receive the ambassador and his young son.Treasures of the Royal Courts: An Ambassadorial Procession in London
/ref>

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Duchatel, Francois Flemish Baroque painters Flemish portrait painters Flemish genre painters 1616 births 1694 deaths Artists from Brussels