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Guglielmo Borremans or Guglielmo Fiamingo (1670–1744) was a Flemish painter whose documented career took principally place in
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
, in particular
Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
,
Cosenza Cosenza (; local dialect: ''Cusenza'', ) is a city in Calabria, Italy. The city centre has a population of approximately 70,000; the urban area counts more than 200,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Province of Cosenza, which has a populati ...
and
Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...
. Here he was one of the pre-eminent late-Baroque
fresco Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...
painters of the first half of the 17th century who received multiple commissions to decorate churches and palaces.


Life

Little is known about the youth and training of Guglielmo Borremans. He is believed to have been 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,
in 1670. Here he trained with the history painter
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 ...
around 1688–1689.Willem Borremans
in the
RKD 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 ...
, accessed 30 March 2016
A painting of the 'Martyrdom of St Andrew' formerly in the
St Bavo's Cathedral, Ghent Saint Bavo's Cathedral, also known as Sint-Baafs Cathedral ( nl, Sint Baafskathedraal), is a cathedral of the Catholic Church in Ghent, Belgium. The 89-meter-tall Gothic building is the seat of the Diocese of Ghent and is named for Saint Bavo of ...
is the only documented work attributed to him dating to his residence in his home country. He likely did not leave Flanders before the end of the 17th century. The last evidence of the artist's presence in Antwerp is found in the records of the archives of the Academy of Fine Arts of Antwerp where he is recorded until 1693.Michele Cordaro, ‘’Borremans, Guglielmo’’
in:Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 13 (1971)
The exact timing and details of his route to and in Italy are not clear. That the artist may have passed through Rome is made likely by a painting by his hand dated to 1703 that was formerly in the Consentino Duomo in Rome. He also spent time in Napoli and possibly in
Cosenza Cosenza (; local dialect: ''Cusenza'', ) is a city in Calabria, Italy. The city centre has a population of approximately 70,000; the urban area counts more than 200,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Province of Cosenza, which has a populati ...
, Calabria. At least 20 works dated from 1703 to 1706 are recorded in Cosenza. He may have had a link with the local members of the Franciscan order as most of his works in Calabria were commissioned by this religious order.Gioacchino Di Marzo (1912), p. 17-18 In fact, these dated works painted in Cosenza are the earliest indication of his presence in southern Italy. The only known paintings by Borremans in Naples are the fresco decorations in the crossing of the
Santa Caterina a Formiello Santa Caterina a Formiello is a church in Naples, in southern Italy, located at the extreme eastern end of the old historic center of the city, on Via Carbonara and Piazza Enrico de Nicola, near the gate called Porta Capuana. The term ''Formiello' ...
dating from around 1708–09. He was replacing Giuseppe Simonelli who had died not long before and had commenced the decoration of the crossing. The subject of the series were stories from the life of
Saint Dominic Saint Dominic ( es, Santo Domingo; 8 August 1170 – 6 August 1221), also known as Dominic de Guzmán (), was a Castilian Catholic priest, mystic, the founder of the Dominican Order and is the patron saint of astronomers and natural scientis ...
. He must have made quite a name for himself in Naples as the 1713 publication ‘'Selva poetica'’ by Giuseppe D'Alessandro, the Duke of Peschiolanciano, included a poem dedicated to the artist entitled "In lode del Signor Guglielmo Borremans, famoso pittore fiammingo" (‘"In praise of Mr. Guglielmo Borremans, famous Flemish painter'). The final verses of the poem refer to Borremans' skills at eternalizing the living and to revive the dead, which point to his activities as a portraitist in Naples. To date no painted portraits have been attributed to the artist other than the half-length portrait of the
Archpriest The ecclesiastical title of archpriest or archpresbyter belongs to certain priests with supervisory duties over a number of parishes. The term is most often used in Eastern Orthodoxy and the Eastern Catholic Churches and may be somewhat analogous ...
Raffaele Riccobene in the altarpiece of the ‘'Immaculata with Angels and Saints'’ for the main altar of the Cathedral of Caltanissetta. Riccobene had funded the decoration of the Cathedral. The Duke of Peschiolanciano clearly had a close relationship with the artist. He likely invited Borremans to design the plates included in the Duke’s book on
equestrianism Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding (Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, Driving (horse), driving, and Equestrian vaulting, vaulting ...
called ''Pietra Paragone de cavalieri'' published in Naples in 1711. This book contains many plates relating to equestrianism that were cut by the prominent Napolitan engraver
Francesco De Grado Francesco De Grado (Naples, active 1694–1730) was an Italian engraver. Biography He engraved a work by Raffaele Maria Filamondo, title published in Naples in 1694 with designs by Filippo Schor, son of the famous engraver Johann Paul Schor. Als ...
after Borremans' designs. The book also includes portraits, 14 of which are equestrian portraits and 14 are bust portraits. It is possibly that the reference in the Duke’s poem to portraits by Borremans relates to these designs for his ''Pietra Paragone de cavalieri''.Mauro Vincenzo Fontana, ''Co i Pittori bisogna averci fortuna. Guglielmo Borremans disegnatore a Napoli per Giuseppe d’Alessandro'', in: Studi in onore di Citti Siracusano, a cura di G. Barbera, Palermo, 2012 Borremans moved to Sicily where he was recorded in Palermo in 1714 when he was commissioned to paint a fresco on the ceiling of the church of Our Lady of the Vault. In Sicily he received multiple commissions to decorate the local churches and the palazzi of prominent personalities. He also painted many canvases. He must have operated a large workshop.Concetto Prestifilippo, ''Salviamo un'opera d'arte - Gli affreschi armerini di Guglielmo Borremans, fiammingo di Sicilia''] He worked in various locations in Sicily outside Palermo including
Nicosia Nicosia ( ; el, Λευκωσία, Lefkosía ; tr, Lefkoşa ; hy, Նիկոսիա, romanized: ''Nikosia''; Cypriot Arabic: Nikusiya) is the largest city, capital, and seat of government of Cyprus. It is located near the centre of the Mesaor ...
,
Catania Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also by ...
,
Enna Enna ( or ; grc, Ἔννα; la, Henna, less frequently ), known from the Middle Ages until 1926 as Castrogiovanni ( scn, Castrugiuvanni ), is a city and located roughly at the center of Sicily, southern Italy, in the province of Enna, towering ...
,
Caltanissetta Caltanissetta (; scn, Nissa or ) is a ''comune'' in the central interior of Sicily, Italy, and the capital of the Province of Caltanissetta. Its inhabitants are called ''Nisseni''. In 2017, the city had a population of 62,797. It is the 14th l ...
,
Buccheri Buccheri is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Syracuse, Sicily (southern Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the ...
,
Caccamo Caccamo (Sicilian language, Sicilian: ''Càccamu'') is a town and ''comune'' located on the Tyrrhenian Sea, Tyrrhenian coast of Sicily in the Metropolitan City of Palermo. History The official founding of Caccamo was not until 1093, when the No ...
and
Alcamo Alcamo (; scn, Àrcamu, italic=no) is the fourth-largest town and commune of the Province of Trapani, Sicily, with a population of 44.925 inhabitants. It is on the borderline with the Metropolitan City of Palermo at a distance of about 50 kilo ...
. One of his largest projects were the decorations of the Chiesa di San Ranieri e dei Santi Quaranta Martiri Pisani in Palermo, a commission he commenced in 1725. In this church he used a profusion of gold and stucco to create one of the richest and most lavish Baroque decorations in Sicily. This is the only work he signed with a signature which refers to his homeland: "Guglielmus Borremans Antuerpiensis Pinxit" ('Painted by Willem Borremans of Antwerp'). In Palermo, he painted in 1733-34 some rooms of the archbishop's palace, which have been partially preserved. He worked on a number of secular projects. He was involved in the decoration of some aristocratic buildings, culminating in the frescos on the ceiling of the main gallery of the Palazzo dei Principi di Cattolica in Palermo. In 1733 he was called as an expert to settle a dispute between the two Sicilian painters, Venerando Costanza and Pietro Paolo Vasta, who were competing for the decoration of the interior of the Cathedral of Acireale. He decided in favour of Vasta. He was himself involved in a similar competition with
Olivio Sòzzi Olivio Sòzzi or Sozzi (1696 in Palermo – 1765 in Spaccaforno) was an Italian painter, active in Sicily during the Rococo period. Biography He obtained his first training in the local studio of Filippo Tancredi, he then moved in 1729 along wi ...
over the decoration of the Cathedral of Alcamo. He won thanks to the support of the patrons. Still in Sicily, he also frescoed the Church of John the Apostle,
Piazza Armerina Piazza Armerina (Gallo-Italic of Sicily: ''Ciazza''; Sicilian: ''Chiazza'') is a ''comune'' in the province of Enna of the autonomous island region of Sicily, southern Italy. History The city of Piazza (as it was called before 1862) developed d ...
. In the latter part of his life Borremans slowed down the hectic pace of his activities and fewer works are documented during this period. Borremans died on 17 April 1744 and was buried in the Capuchin Church in
Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...
. His son Luigi who likely trained and worked with him continued in his father's vein by creating vast decorative cycles for the local churches. Luigi's activity is known for signed and dated frescoes of 1747 located in Caltanissetta. To his grandson Guglielmo the Younger are attributed extensions to the paintings in the Cathedral of Enna, which are largely considered to be by the hand of Guglielmo the Elder.


Work

Almost all of his known oeuvre was made and is located in Southern Italy. The majority of his works depict religious and, to a lesser extent, mythological subject matter. He was praised as a portrait painter during his residence in Naples, but no painted portraits are currently attributed to him. Guglielmo Borremans was quite unique in that as a Flemish painter who was not trained in the technique and art of fresco painting, he was able to establish himself as one of the leading fresco painters in southern Italy in the early 18th century. He may have learned the fresco technique from his master Pieter van Lint who during his time in Italy painted fresco's in the Cybo-Soderini Chapel in the
Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo it, Basilica Parrocchiale Santa Maria del Popolo , image = 20140803 Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo Rome 0191.jpg , caption = The church from Piazza del Popolo , coordinates = , image_size ...
in
Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...
.Peter van Lint
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 created works on canvas. Many of his works have been lost due to destruction caused by war and lack of adequate restoration. He also used a thinner wash of pigments than local painters which may have contributed to a quicker decay. His earliest works show his debt to the Flemish Baroque school and in particular the work 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 traditio ...
. Later his style absorbed local and contemporary influences and developed towards the late Baroque idiom that was popular in southern Italy at the time.Flemish Masters and Other Artists (2008), 'Introduction' His youth works show in particular his dependence on the Rubens tradition as continued by Rubens' pupils
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
Jacob Jordaens Jacob (Jacques) Jordaens (19 May 1593 – 18 October 1678) was a Flemish painter, draughtsman and tapestry designer known for his history paintings, genre scenes and portraits. After Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck, he was the leading Fle ...
. In this early period he seems to have been free from direct Italian influence although he showed the indirect influence of Italian art as transmitted by his master Pieter van Lint. His work of that time was close to the Flemish-influenced Italian art then current in
Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...
. In the '' Dispute of St Catherine of Alexandria with the philosophers before Maxentius'' he comes particularly close to works of Pieter van Lint such as van Lint's ''Christ healing the lame at the pool of Bethesda'' (1640s,
Kunsthistorisches Museum The Kunsthistorisches Museum ( "Museum of Art History", often referred to as the "Museum of Fine Arts") is an art museum in Vienna, Austria. Housed in its festive palatial building on the Vienna Ring Road, it is crowned with an octagonal do ...
, Vienna). The pieces created in Cosenza in 1703-1706 show stylistically a Flemish basis over which a layer of pre-
rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...
sensitivity has been laid. At the same time the works reveal some late Manierist elements, possibly absorbed from Pieter van Lint, and visible in the lengthened and graceful figures. These works display an originality in design and an exquisite palette. Borremans' use of brilliant reds and full-bodied blends, as well as the detailed rendering of the fabrics and the different pieces of flowers show his 17th century Flemish heritage. These works also show similarity to the work of other pupils of van Lint such as
Godfried Maes Godfried Maes (baptised on 15 August 1649 Antwerp – 30 May 1700, Antwerp) was a Flemish painter, draughtsman and designer of tapestries. He was active as a painter of altarpieces and allegorical scenes. He was a prolific draughtsman who ma ...
whose work also shows a tendency to lengthen the forms and use soft subjects. His brushstrokes in these works is lively and his compositions are balanced. In his Naples paintings dating to 1708-1709 he showed a similarity to the work of
Luigi Garzi Luigi Garzi (1638 – 1721) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, whose work displayed heavy influences of the Bolognese painter, Guido Reni. Biography Born in Pistoia. He started learning from a poorly known landscape painter, Salomo ...
, a Roman influence that may also have been the result of the influence of followers of the Roman style in Naples such as
Luca Giordano Luca Giordano (18 October 1634 – 3 January 1705) was an Italian late-Baroque painter and printmaker in etching. Fluent and decorative, he worked successfully in Naples and Rome, Florence, and Venice, before spending a decade in Spain. Ear ...
and
Paolo de Matteis Paolo de Matteis (also known as ''Paolo de' Matteis''; 9 February 1662 – 26 January 1728) was an Italian painter. Biography He was born in Piano Vetrale, a hamlet of Orria, in the current Province of Salerno, and died in Naples. He trained wit ...
. His masterpieces include the remarkable series of frescoes in the
Basilica di Santa Maria Assunta In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its nam ...
in Alcamo, the Chiesa delle Anime Sante in Enna, the Chiesa di San Giuseppe in Leonforte and the Chiesa dell'Assunta di San Giuseppe dei teatini in Palermo.


Selected works

* Frescoes in the Chiesa dei SS. Quaranta Martiri alla Guilla and Chiesa di S. Maria di Montevergini in Palermo * Frescoes in the Chiesa Madre or Basilica di Santa Maria Assunta, Alcamo * ''Annunciation'' in San Michele Arcangelo ai Minoriti, Catania * Frescoes (started 1722) in the Cathedral Santa Maria la Nova and in the Church of St. Agatha in Caltanissetta * Ceiling frescoes of the apse of the Chiesa di San Vincenzo Ferreri, and a ''Glory of San Vincenzo Ferrere'' (1717), both in
Nicosia, Sicily Nicosia (; Gallo-Italic of Sicily: ; scn, Nicusìa) is a Town and ''comune'' of the province of Enna in Sicily, southern Italy. It is located at 720 m above the sea level, on a rocky massive culminating in four imposing hills. The origin of Ni ...


Sources

*'Flemish Masters and Other Artists: Foreign Artists from the Heritage of the Fondo Edifici Di Culto Del Ministero Dell'interno', Palazzo Ruspoli (Rome, Italy), L'erma di Bretschneider, 2008 * Gioacchino Di Marzo, 'Guglielmo Borremans di Anversa, pittore fiammingo in Sicilia nel secolo XVIII : (1715 - 1744)’, Reber, Palermo, 1912


Notes


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Borremans, Guglielmo 1670 births 1744 deaths Flemish Baroque painters Flemish history painters Artists from Antwerp Fresco painters Painters from Sicily 17th-century Italian painters Italian male painters 18th-century Italian painters Italian Baroque painters 18th-century Italian male artists