Willem Forchondt, or Guillam Forchondt the Elder (1608–1678) was a Flemish painter,

cabinet maker A cabinet is a case or cupboard with shelves and/or drawers for storing or displaying items. Some cabinets are stand alone while others are built in to a wall or are attached to it like a medicine cabinet. Cabinets are typically made of wood (s ...

and

art dealer An art dealer is a person or company that buys and sells works of art, or acts as the intermediary between the buyers and sellers of art. An art dealer in contemporary art typically seeks out various artists to represent, and builds relationshi ...

. He operated a successful painting workshop and a profitable are dealership which extended throughout Europe through the satellite offices operated by his sons in Vienna, Lisbon and Cadiz. His international art dealership played an important role in the spread of Flemish Baroque art in Europe and South-America.Sandra van Ginhoven, ''Guilliam Forchondt and the role of the Greater Netherlands in the dissemination of Flemish art in Latin America''
De Zeventiende Eeuw 31 (2015), p. 159-178 He changed the relationship between art dealer and artist by becoming himself involved in the organisation of the art production process.

Life

He was born 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,

as the son of the ebony worker and art dealer Melchior Forchondt the Elder, originally from Breslau, and the brother of Melchior the Younger.Guilliam Forchondt
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 ...

Melchior the Elder made his name dealing in ebony cabinets that were decorated with oil paintings, that he commissioned from members of the Antwerp

Guild of St. 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 Four Evangelists, Evangelist Saint Luke, Luke, the patron sa ...

. Young Guillam grew up in this artistic milieu and became a member of the guild in 1632 as "winemaster", which meant his father was still a member at the time. Like his father he was also skilled as a maker of cabinets. When his father died in 1633 Guillam took over the business. He married Maria Lemmens on 3 August 1636. The couple had 8 children among whom are known: *Alexander (1643–1683) trained as a pharmacist and became an art dealer for his father in Vienna while also being court jeweler for

Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I (Leopold Ignaz Joseph Balthasar Franz Felician; hu, I. Lipót; 9 June 1640 – 5 May 1705) was Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary, Croatia, and Bohemia. The second son of Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor, by his first wife, Maria An ...

. He takes over the leadership of the Forchondt firm when his father dies in 1670 until he dies himself in 1683. *Melchior III (1641–1708) became a painter and goldsmith and stayed in Venice, Paris, Vienna, Prague, Linz and Passau * Marcus (1651–1706) became a painter and jeweler and stayed in Vienna and Linz *Susanna (1637–1711) never married and left a legacy including the family archives *Marie-Anna *Justo travelled to Lisbon and later Cadiz where he stayed on for the family business until his return to Antwerp in 1707. were sold off. *Andreas (1650-1675) also travelled to Cadiz He was internationally renowned as an art dealer and financier. He lived in the former house of Rubens in the centre of Antwerp. Upon his death in 1710 the business activities of Forchondt family ceased and its assets were distributed. * Guilliam Forchondt the Younger (1645–after 1677) was the only son to train as a painter. He traveled first with his brothers to Vienna and Linz and later to Lisbon and Cadiz. He would later carry on the family business possibly together with his mother. Stefan de Vries, ''Le commerce de l’art entre les Flandres et l’Espagne, 1648-1713'', Master thesis 1 : Histoire de l’art Université Paris Sorbonne-Paris IV UFR Histoire de l’Art et Archéologie, 2007 Forchondt
family papers of Giulliam Forchondt (sr) with his correspondents Johan Lacroy and Anna Nonnius, Stadsarchief Antwerpen, inv.nr. IB#1091 With the help of this network of family connections in Europe Forchondt was able to turn his father's business into an international art and luxury goods enterprise. The many clients of the Forchondt firm included prominent personalities of the time such as the Emperor of Austria and the

Princes of Liechtenstein There have been 16 monarchs of the Principality of Liechtenstein since 1608. The current Prince of Liechtenstein is Hans-Adam II, since 13 November 1989. The current Hereditary Prince and Regent of Liechtenstein is Alois, since 15 August 2004.

. Around 1700

Hans-Adam I, Prince of Liechtenstein Hans-Adam I (Johann Adam Andreas; 16 August 1662 – 16 June 1712) was the son of Karl Eusebius, Prince of Liechtenstein (1611–1684) and Princess Johanna Beatrix of Dietrichstein (1625–1676). On 18 January 1699 he acquired the seigneur ...

acquired from the Forchondt firm two masterpieces of Rubens: the '' Massacre of the Innocents'' and ''

Samson and Delilah Samson and Delilah are Biblical figures. Samson and Delilah may also refer to: In music * ''Samson and Delilah'' (opera), an opera by Camille Saint-Saëns * ''Samson & Delilah'' (album), released in 2013 by V V Brown * "Samson and Delilah" (t ...

''.Press release on record breaking sale amount
for Rubens ''Massacre of the Innocents'' Guillam Forchondt died in Antwerp.

Dozijnschilder

Guillam Forchondt (I) -The Adoration of the Magi

As a painter Forchondt worked in the Flemish Baroque style of Rubens,

Jan Brueghel the Younger Jan Brueghel (also Bruegel or Breughel) the Younger (, ; ; 13 September 1601 – 1 September 1678) was a Flemish Baroque painter. He was the son of Jan Brueghel the Elder, and grandson of Pieter Bruegel the Elder, both prominent painters who c ...

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 ...

and

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 ...

clearly adapting his output to the demand in the market. Many of his works can be regarded as pastiches or reduced copies of works by Rubens. He is known to have collaborated on compositions with other painters such as

Willem van Herp Willem van Herp (I) or Willem van Herp the Elder (variations on first name: 'Guilliam', 'Gilliam' and 'Guillaume') (c. 1614 in Antwerp – 1677) was a Flemish Baroque painter specializing in religious paintings and small cabinet paintings of "low ...

who painted the

staffage In painting, staffage () are the human and animal figures depicted in a scene, especially a landscape, that are not the primary subject matter of the work. Typically they are small, and there to add an indication of scale and add interest. Before ...

. Forchondt enjoyed a high reputation for his design drawings for cabinets.Bert De Munck, Steven L. Kaplan, Hugo Soly, ''Learning on the Shop Floor: Historical Perspectives on Apprenticeship'', Berghahn Books, 2007, p. 99-110 In the 1670s Flanders suffered a severe economic downturn due mostly to an invasion by the French. Guillam Forchondt and his brother Melchior the Younger weathered the crisis by becoming art entrepreneurs. They hired lesser painters and supplied them with the necessary materials to create group projects such as large commissioned copies of famous works, or large decorative objects as their father had dealt in. At one point, the ''Brothers Forchondt'' had 60 painters in their service for export to France, Austria, Spain and Portugal. Among the painters in their employ were Franciscus Hamers who became a member of the guild in 1674, and

Peter van de Velde Peter van de Velde or Peter van den Velde was a Flemish marine painter who was active in Antwerp. Some art historians believe that the long lifespan attributed to this artist could hide two artists operating under the same name, possibly a fa ...

. Other painters such as

, Michiel II Coignet,

Abraham Willemsens Abraham Willemsens or Abraham Willemsen (c. 1605-1610 - 1672), was a Flemish painter of history and genre paintings.Ab ...

Pieter van Lint Pieter van Lint or Peter van Lint (1609–1690) was a Flemish painter, draughtsman and designer of tapestries. He excelled in history paintings, genre scenes and portraits in the Flemish Baroque style with some Classisizing influence. He work ...

, Simon de Vos,

Alexander Casteels the Elder Alexander Casteels the Elder or Alexander Casteels (I) ( – 1681–82) was a Flemish painter and draughtsman. He is known for his battle scenes and landscapes with hunters and elegant companies.Gerard de la Vallée Gerard de la Vallée (1596/1597 – after 1667) was a Flemish people, Flemish painter of landscapes and history paintings.Abraham Willemsens (active 1627-1672), A peasant family in a yard
op de site van Christie'sSandra van Ginhoven, ''Connecting Art Markets: Guilliam Forchondt’s Dealership in Antwerp (c.1632–78) and the Overseas Paintings Trade'', BRILL, 2016, p. 94, 136, 138, 254, 284 There was at that time a great demand abroad and in particular in Spain for paintings in the style of the great Flemish masters such as Rubens and Anthony van Dyck. Art dealers such as the Forchondts who had a local representation in various foreign countries facilitated the trade in these paintings. The religious works were often painted on copper, a painting medium that was much appreciated in Spain, both because of its durability and its glossy finish. The group works created under the direction of the Forchondt firm played an important role in the spread of paintings on copper in Mexico where they were exported through Spain's trade with Latin America.Jesús Ángel Sánchez Rivera, ''Sobre una serie de cobres flamencos de pintores en la estela de Rubens''
Anales de Historia del Arte, vol. extraordinario: ''Saberes artísticos bajo signo y designios del «Urbinate»'' (2011), pp. 483-505] Though he probably did his colleagues in the Guild a service by creating production work and new export channels for sales, he was never referred to by name by the Dutch artist biographer

Arnold Houbraken Arnold Houbraken (28 March 1660 – 14 October 1719) was a Dutch painter and writer from Dordrecht, now remembered mainly as a biographer of Dutch Golden Age painters. Life Houbraken was sent first to learn ''threadtwisting'' (Twyndraat) fr ...

, who called him and his family the ''keelbeulen'' (cut throats) of Antwerp. Other artists and craftsmen likely regarded art entrepreneurs like Forchondt as persons who interfered in the artistic process without actually carrying out any manual work. The small ebony masters in Antwerp became so frustrated with Forchondt that they commenced litigation requiring that like them he pass a master test in order to retain his Guild membership. They likely did this to confirm the importance of this test to their status as craftsmen at a time when the more entrepreneurial organization of their craft (by dealers like Forchondt) threatened their position. As the son of a master, Forchondt had not undertaken any formal apprenticeship and likely had avoided the master test.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Forchondt, Guillam 1 1608 births 1678 deaths Flemish Baroque painters Flemish history painters Flemish art dealers Flemish landscape painters Artists from Antwerp Painters from Antwerp