Pierre-Joseph Witdoeck, also known as Petrus Josephus Witdoeck (4 January 1803,

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,

– 16 October 1889,

Tournai Tournai or Tournay ( ; ; nl, Doornik ; pcd, Tornai; wa, Tornè ; la, Tornacum) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It lies southwest of Brussels on the river Scheldt. Tournai is part of Euromet ...

) was a Belgian painter and architect. Some sources give his year of death as 1840 or 1873.

Biography

He was the son of Franciscus Donatus Witdoeck (1766–1834), a painter and professor of architecture at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

, who gave him his first lessons. Later, he studied with

Ferdinand de Braekeleer Ferdinand de Braekeleer ( Antwerp, 12 February 1792 – Antwerp, 16 May 1883), sometimes spelled as Ferdinand de Braeckeleer, was a Flemish painter and printmaker.

and Mathieu-Ignace Van Brée. One of his ancestors,

Hans Witdoeck Hans Witdoeck or Jan Witdoeck (Antwerp, baptized 8 December 1615 - probably Antwerp, after 1642) was a Flemish people, Flemish engraver, draughtsman and art dealer.

, was a student 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 ...

. In 1824, he accompanied Colonel on a scientific expedition sponsored by King

William I of the Netherlands William I (Willem Frederik, Prince of Orange-Nassau; 24 August 1772 – 12 December 1843) was a Prince of Orange, the King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg. He was the son of the last Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic, who we ...

. They visited Algeria, Greece, Egypt and India; returning in 1827 through Italy. He brought back numerous sketches of architecture and antiquities, notably from the island of

Rhodes Rhodes (; el, Ρόδος , translit=Ródos ) is the largest and the historical capital of the Dodecanese islands of Greece. Administratively, the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes regional unit, which is part of the So ...

. They were published by Colonel Rottiers in 1830. After that, he taught architecture, painting and design at the

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

college in

Brugelette Brugelette (; pcd, Brujlete; wa, Brudjlete) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. On January 1, 2006, Brugelette had a total population of 3,284. The total area is which gives a population density of . The ...

, in the province of Hainaut. This was followed by an appointment as the City Architect of

Turnhout Turnhout () is a Belgium, Belgian Municipalities in Belgium, municipality and city located in the Flemish Region, Flemish Provinces of Belgium, province of Antwerp (province), Antwerp. The municipality comprises only the city of Turnhout proper. ...

, where he also founded and directed a design academy. He married Marie-Antoinette van Haesendonck and they had twelve children; several of whom became painters, but of no particular note. His daughter, Marie-Thérèse, married Colonel , a colonial administrator. He was especially interested in religious and historical subjects. Many of his works are devoted to the history of the

Spanish Netherlands Spanish Netherlands (Spanish: Países Bajos Españoles; Dutch: Spaanse Nederlanden; French: Pays-Bas espagnols; German: Spanische Niederlande.) (historically in Spanish: ''Flandes'', the name "Flanders" was used as a ''pars pro toto'') was the Ha ...

. A large collection of his works may be seen at the

Broel Museum The Broel Museum (Broelmuseum) was an art museum, focusing on classical and applied arts of the 18th - 19th century. It was located on the Buda Island in Kortrijk, Belgium. The building was a converted 18th-century neoclassical mansion, located ...

Courtrai Kortrijk ( , ; vls, Kortryk or ''Kortrik''; french: Courtrai ; la, Cortoriacum), sometimes known in English as Courtrai or Courtray ( ), is a Belgian city and municipality in the Flemish province of West Flanders. It is the capital and larges ...

. The contains a notable representation of the

Last Supper Image:The Last Supper - Leonardo Da Vinci - High Resolution 32x16.jpg, 400px, alt=''The Last Supper'' by Leonardo da Vinci - Clickable Image, Depictions of the Last Supper in Christian art have been undertaken by artistic masters for centuries, ...

, dating from 1843, which is integrated into the altar.

Sources

Dictionnaire des peintres belges
database

BALaT Balat may refer to: Places * Balat, Fatih Balat is in the old city on the European side of Istanbul, on the western shore of the Golden Horn, sandwiched between Fener and Ayvansaray. Historically, it was the centre of the Jewish community ...

@ the

Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage The Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage (KIK-IRPA, for ''Koninklijk Instituut voor het Kunstpatrimonium - Institut Royal du Patrimoine Artistique'') is a Belgian federal institute of the Belgian Federal Science Policy Office (BELSPO). The insti ...

* Van Der Aa (A.-J), ''Biographisch Woordenboek der Nederlanden'', Ed. J.J. Van Brederode, Haarlem,1877.

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Witdoeck, Pierre-Joseph 1803 births 1889 deaths Belgian painters Belgian history painters Artists from Antwerp