Laurens Craen - Still life with imaginary view - Google Art Project

Laurens Craen (c. 1620 in

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...

– c.1670 in

Middelburg Middelburg may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Europe * Middelburg, Zeeland, the capital city of the province of Zeeland, southwestern Netherlands ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Middelburg, a former Catholic diocese with its see in the Zeeland ...

), was a Dutch Golden Age still life painter. Laurens Craen was active between 1638 and 1664. He was possibly the son of Pieter Craen.

Biography

Laurens Craen life and career is not as well known like his paintings that are well documented, a total of nineteen works are attributed to Craen. His name is mentioned in the archives of

, testifying that he was active there from 1655 till 1664. Craen was a member of the Guild of Saint Luke of Middelburg. He painted mainly in Middelburg (

Zeeland , nl, Ik worstel en kom boven("I struggle and emerge") , anthem = "Zeeuws volkslied"("Zeelandic Anthem") , image_map = Zeeland in the Netherlands.svg , map_alt = , m ...

), but was also active in Antwerp and The Hague. According to the RKD he was a fruit and flower still life painter from The Hague who was mentioned there in a letter to

Constantijn Huygens Sir Constantijn Huygens, Lord of Zuilichem ( , , ; 4 September 159628 March 1687), was a Dutch Golden Age poet and composer. He was also secretary to two Princes of Orange: Frederick Henry and William II, and the father of the scientist Ch ...

and who later moved to Middelburg.Laurens Craen 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 ...

His works show such a strong influence from

Jan Davidsz de Heem Jan Davidsz. de Heem or in-full ''Jan Davidszoon de Heem'', also called ''Johannes de Heem'' or ''Johannes van Antwerpen'' or ''Jan Davidsz de Hem'' (c. 17 April 1606 in Utrecht – before 26 April 1684 in Antwerp), was a still life painter ...

that he is registered in Antwerp in 1645 and was possibly his pupil at that time. He became a member of the Middelburg Guild of St. Luke in 1654 and paid dues until 1663.

Style

Laurens Craen made himself a name as a still life painter. He depicted often objects, food items, shell-fish, wine, vegetables and fruits arranged artistically, often objects that symbolized wealth and abundance, creating a voluptuous feast. His painting have an intimate and peaceful air. The paintings' details are painted with precision and virtuosity. By gradually toning down the shades, the skillfully and precisely depicted objects within the painting appear almost real, the metals look due to the reflected light shape are cold and the fruit and textiles soft. These painting were called

pronkstilleven ''Pronkstilleven'' (Dutch for 'ostentatious', 'ornate' or 'sumptuous' still life) is a style of ornate still life painting, which was developed in the 1640s in Antwerp from where it spread quickly to the Dutch Republic. Development Flemish art ...

or sumptuous paintings in Dutch.

''Still Life with Imaginary View''

In the painting ''Still Life with Imaginary View'' from circa 1645 the richness of the objects displayed attract the attention while the little window creates a contemplative illusion of distance. The painting example of pronkstilleven or sumptuous painting Shapes, colours and themes are echoed within the painting giving the composition both balance and dynamics. The elaborately depicted lemon peel is almost touchable, a structure in the structure. The wine transparent when catching the light, as well as the pomegranate seeds. The rich interplay of the total colour scheme in delicate shades creates a pleasing colour harmony.

References

External links

Laurens Craen
on Artnet {{DEFAULTSORT:Craen, Laurens 1620 births 1670 deaths Dutch Golden Age painters Dutch male painters Artists from The Hague Painters from Middelburg Dutch still life painters