Maria Verelst (1680–1744) was an 18th-century English painter.

Biography

Verelst was born in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, but moved with her family to London at the age of three. Her father was the Dutch painter Harman Verelst, who taught her and her brothers

Simon Simon may refer to: People * Simon (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name Simon * Simon (surname), including a list of people with the surname Simon * Eugène Simon, French naturalist and the genus ...

and Cornelis how to paint.Maria Verelst
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 ...

She is known for miniatures and portraits as well as becoming a language teacher. She spoke many different languages such as Dutch and Latin. According to the Dutch artist biographer Jacob Campo Weyerman, she overheard some Dutch men in a London theatre speaking about artists in their native language and she corrected them. The gentlemen excused themselves and continued speaking in Italian. She corrected them again, and they continued in Latin with the remark that they would not be interrupted in that language again. When she again spoke, it was to insist that women could not be barred from learning languages, despite the fact that they were not allowed to participate in public proceedings. The gentlemen were so impressed they inquired of her occupation and came to visit her the next day bearing gifts and to order their portraits made.Juffrouw Verelst Biography, p 254
in ''De levens-beschryvingen der Nederlandsche konst-schilders'' (Volume 3, 1729) by Jacob Campo Weyerman

Career

Her earliest paintings have not survived. In the 1720s she worked with William Aikman and

Charles Jervas Charles Jervas (also Jarvis and Jervis; c. 1675 – 2 November 1739) was an Irish portrait painter, translator, and art collector of the early 18th century. Early life Born in Shinrone, County Offaly, Ireland around 1675, the son of John J ...

but her style more closely reflected Thomas Hudson by the next decade. Landscape backgrounds and informal dress were her style of choice for the majority of her female subjects. Hayes notes that while her modeling is firm, her staging of drapery is simple. She also worked with Sir James Thornhill around this same period of time. Murals have been preserved in England that have been attributed as a joint effort between the two painters.

Works

Some of her works include: ''Portrait of Lady Smythe, three-quarter-length'', ''Portrait of a lady, half-length, in a silver white gown'', ''Nature morte aux huitres et aux crabs'', ''Portrait of Duke of Marlborough'', ''Portrait of a woman, Lady Middleton'', ''Portrait of a lady in a yellow dress seated, with a wooded landscape beyond'', ''Portrait of a Lady with a Country Estate in the Distance'', and ''Duke of Chandos in the dressing room''.

Family Tree

End of Life

She died in London in 1744, nearly 40 years after her father, and 20 years after her uncle. Both of whom were accomplished painters and her earliest mentors.

References

External links

Painting by Maria Verelst
of

Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough, Princess of Mindelheim, Countess of Nellenburg (née Jenyns, spelt Jennings in most modern references; 5 June 1660 (Old Style) – 18 October 1744), was an English courtier who rose to be one of th ...

on website of the

Wallace Collection The Wallace Collection is a museum in London occupying Hertford House in Manchester Square, the former townhouse of the Seymour family, Marquesses of Hertford. It is named after Sir Richard Wallace, who built the extensive collection, along ...

Maria Verelst
on Artnet {{DEFAULTSORT:Verelst, Maria 1680 births 1744 deaths 18th-century English painters 18th-century English women artists Artists from Vienna English women painters English people of Dutch descent