Pieter Claesz (c. 1597 – 1 January 1660) was a

Dutch Golden Age painter Dutch Golden Age painting is the painting of the Dutch Golden Age, a period in Dutch history roughly spanning the 17th century, during and after the later part of the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648) for Dutch independence. The new Dutch Republi ...

still life A still life (plural: still lifes) is a work of art depicting mostly wikt:inanimate, inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which are either natural (food, flowers, dead animals, plants, rocks, shells, etc.) or artificiality, m ...

Biography

Vanitasstilleven met de Doornuittrekker Rijksmuseum SK-A-3930

He was born in

Berchem Berchem () is a southern Districts of Antwerp, district of the municipality and city of Antwerp in the Flemish Region of Belgium. Berchem is located along the old ''Grote Steenweg'' (Dutch language, Dutch for 'Big Paved Road') that has connected ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, near

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,

, where he became a member of the Guild of St. Luke in 1620. He moved to

Haarlem Haarlem (; predecessor of ''Harlem'' in English) is a city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland. Haarlem is situated at the northern edge of the Randstad, one of the most populated metropoli ...

in 1620, where his son, the landscape painter

Nicolaes Pieterszoon Berchem Nicolaes Pieterszoon Berchem (1 October 1620 – 18 February 1683) was a highly esteemed and prolific Dutch Golden Age painter of pastoral landscapes, populated with mythological or biblical figures, but also of a number of allegories and genre ...

was born (October 1).Pieter Claesz entry
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 ...

He and

Willem Claeszoon Heda Willem Claesz. Heda (December 14, 1593/1594c. 1680/1682) was a Dutch Golden Age artist from the city of Haarlem devoted exclusively to the painting of still life. He is known for his innovation of the late breakfast genre of still life painti ...

, who also worked in Haarlem, were the most important exponents of the "ontbijt" or dinner piece. They painted with subdued, virtually monochromatic palettes, the subtle handling of light and texture being the prime means of expression. Claesz generally chose objects of a more hospitable kind than Heda, although his later work became more colourful and decorative. Claesz's still lifes often suggest allegorical purpose, with skulls serving as reminders of human mortality. The two men founded a distinguished tradition of still life painting in Haarlem. Pieter Claesz was influenced by the artist movement 'Vanitas'.

Legacy

Claesz is registered in the

Haarlem Guild of St. Luke The Haarlem Guild of Saint Luke was first a Christian, and later a city Guild for various trades falling under the patron saints Luke the Evangelist and Saint Eligius. History During the lifetime of Geertgen tot Sint Jans, there was probably a ...

as the teacher of his son, Nicolaes Berchem, in 1634, but Nicolaes preferred landscapes to still life painting and later after a trip his talent in music. Claesz had, in addition to his son, the pupils

Evert van Aelst Evert van Aelst, sometimes known as Everard Aalst, (1602 in Delft – 19 February 1657 in Delft) was a Dutch still life painter. Van Aelst was the uncle and teacher of Willem van Aelst. Both were famous for their still life paintings of game, ...

Floris van Dyck Floris van Dyck, also called Floris van Dijck or Floris Claesz. van Dyck (c.1575 – before 26 April 1651) was a Dutch Golden Age still life painter. Biography van Dyck lived in Haarlem for most of his life, but he was born in Delft. He was a ...

Christian Berentz Christian Berentz or Bernetz (1658–1722) was a German Baroque painter. Biography Berentz was born in Hamburg, Germany. According to the RKD pupil he was the pupil of Hermann Kamphusen from 1667 to 1673 and then from 1673 to 1677 a pupil of G ...

Floris van Schooten Floris Gerritsz van Schooten or Floris van Schooten (between 1585 and 1588 – buried 14 November 1656)Floris v ...

, and Jan Jansz Treck. File:Pieter Claesz. - Stilleven met kalkoenpastei - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Still Life with Turkey Pie'', oil on panel, 1627 File:Claesz., Pieter - Still Life with Musical Instruments - 1623.jpg, ''Still Life with Musical Instruments'', by Pieter Claesz. 1623. File:Pieter Claesz. - Stilleven.jpg, ''Still Life with Römer, Silver Tazza and Bread Roll''. Prado Museum, Madrid. File:Pieter CLAESZ. - A still life with a roemer, a crab and a peeled lemon - Google Art Project.jpg, A still life with a roemer, a crab and a peeled lemon File:Pieter Claesz - Still Life with Fruit and Roemer - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Still Life with fruit, bread and roemer''

References

*National Gallery of Art

External links

Pieter Claesz
at PubHist {{DEFAULTSORT:Claesz, Pieter 1590s births 1660 deaths Flemish still life painters 17th-century Flemish painters Dutch Golden Age painters Dutch male painters People from Berchem Artists from Haarlem Dutch still life painters Painters from Antwerp Painters from Haarlem