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A regents group portrait (''regentenstuk'' or ''regentessenstuk'' in
Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
, literally "regents' piece"), is a
group portrait
A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together.
Groups of people
* Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity
* Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic iden ...
of the board of trustees, called regents or regentesses, of a
charitable organization
A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, Religion, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good).
The legal definitio ...
or
guild
A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometimes ...
. This type of group portrait was popular in
Dutch Golden Age painting
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 Republ ...
during the 17th century, and in the 18th century. They were intended to be hung in the ''regentenkamer'', the regents' meeting room,
"Informatiepakket Frans Hals", Frans Hals Museum
(Dutch) or another prominent location in the institution.
The regents of a charitable organization (such as an orphanage
An orphanage is a Residential education, residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the Childcare, care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared for by their biological families. The parent ...
, poorhouse
A poorhouse or workhouse is a government-run (usually by a county or municipality) facility to support and provide housing for the dependent or needy.
Workhouses
In England, Wales and Ireland (but not in Scotland), ‘workhouse’ has been the ...
, hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...
or ''hofje
{{inline refs needed, date=May 2012
A hofje (diminutive of 'hof', 'court') is a Dutch word for a courtyard with almshouses around it. Hofjes have existed since the Middle Ages.
A hofje provided housing for elderly people (mostly women). T ...
'') or guild were drawn from the ''regenten
In the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, the regenten (the Dutch plural for ''regent'') were the rulers of the Dutch Republic, the leaders of the Dutch cities or the heads of organisations (e.g. "regent of an orphanage"). Though not formally a heredi ...
'', the upper class of Dutch society. It was a prestigious honorary office, so the regents were keen to have themselves depicted in this role. The leading portraitists of the day were commissioned to make ''regentenstukken'', including Rembrandt
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consid ...
(whose ''Syndics of the Drapers' Guild
''The Sampling Officials'' ( nl, De Staalmeesters), also called ''Syndics of the Drapers’ Guild'' ( nl, De waardijns van het Amsterdamse lakenbereidersgilde), is a 1662 oil painting by Rembrandt. It is currently owned by the Rijksmuseum in Ams ...
'' is a subtle treatment of a group round a table), Frans Hals
Frans Hals the Elder (, , ; – 26 August 1666) was a Dutch Golden Age painter, chiefly of individual and group portraits and of genre works, who lived and worked in Haarlem.
Hals played an important role in the evolution of 17th-century group ...
, Ferdinand Bol
Ferdinand Bol (24 June 1616 – 24 August 1680) was a Dutch painter, etcher and draftsman. Although his surviving work is rare, it displays Rembrandt's influence; like his master, Bol favored historical subjects, portraits, numerous self-port ...
, and Bartholomeus van der Helst
Bartholomeus van der Helst (1613 – buried 16 December 1670) was a Dutch painter. Considered to be one of the leading portrait painters of the Dutch Golden Age, his elegant portraits gained him the patronage of Amsterdam's elite as well as t ...
. The commissions proved lucrative, particularly since the regents only served for a few years, to be replaced with a new set of regents who were equally eager to be painted.
In some institutions the regentesses were all female, and so the portraits were of all-female groups, or there were mixed-gender regents who were painted separately, as in Hals' two portraits of the ''Regents
A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
'' and ''Regentesses of the Old Men's Almshouse
''The Regentesses of the Old Men's Almshouse Haarlem'' is a regents group portrait of four regentesses and their servant painted by Frans Hals, ''c.'' 1664, for the Oude Mannenhuis in Haarlem, the Netherlands. It forms a pendant (art), pendant wi ...
''. Occasionally the painting depicted not just the regents but also others, such as the ''binnenvader'' or ''binnenmoeder'', who was in charge of the day-to-day operations. For instance, Abraham de Vries in 1633 painted a ''regentenstuk'' for the ''Burgerweeshuis'' orphanage in Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
showing not only the regents but also the ''binnenvader'' leading in a young orphan girl.
Group portraits, largely a Dutch invention, were popular among the large numbers of civic associations that were a notable part of Dutch life, such as the militia group portrait
Schutterij () refers to a voluntary city guard or citizen militia in the medieval and early modern Netherlands, intended to protect the town or city from attack and act in case of revolt or fire. Their training grounds were often on open spaces w ...
or ''schuttersstuk'' showing officers of a city's ''schutterij
Schutterij () refers to a voluntary city guard or citizen militia in the medieval and early modern Netherlands, intended to protect the town or city from attack and act in case of revolt or fire. Their training grounds were often on open spaces w ...
'' or militia guards, boards of trustees and regents of guilds and charitable foundations and the like. Especially in the first half of the 17th century, portraits were very formal and stiff in composition. Boards of trustees preferred an image of austerity and humility, posing in dark clothing (which by its refinement testified to their prominent standing in society), often seated around a table, with solemn expressions on their faces. Scientists often posed with instruments and objects of their study around them. Groups were often seated around a table, each person looking at the viewer. Much attention was paid to fine details in clothing, and where applicable, to furniture and other signs of a person's position in society. Later in the century groups became livelier and colours brighter.
The cost of group portraits was usually shared by the subjects, often not equally. The amount paid might determine each person's place in the picture, either head to toe in full regalia in the foreground or face only in the back of the group. Sometimes all group members paid an equal sum, which was likely to lead to quarrels when some members gained a more prominent place in the picture than others.
In Amsterdam most of these paintings ultimately ended up in possession of the city council, and many are now on display in the Amsterdam Museum
The Amsterdam Museum, known until 2010 as the Amsterdam Historical Museum, is an Amsterdam-based museum dedicated to the city's past and present. Due to the renovation of its main location, the museum is temporarily located in the building the Amst ...
.
Gallery
File:Abraham de Vries - regents of the city orphanage in Amsterdam.jpg, Regents of the ''Burgerweeshuis'' orphanage in Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
, painted by Abraham de Vries in 1633
File:Bartholomeus van der Helst - Regents of the Walloon Orphanage - WGA11346.jpg, Regents of the ''Walenweeshuis'' orphanage in Amsterdam, painted by Bartholomeus van der Helst
Bartholomeus van der Helst (1613 – buried 16 December 1670) was a Dutch painter. Considered to be one of the leading portrait painters of the Dutch Golden Age, his elegant portraits gained him the patronage of Amsterdam's elite as well as t ...
in 1637
File:Frans Hals 018.jpg, Regents of the '' St. Elisabethgasthuis'' hospital in 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 ...
, painted by Frans Hals
Frans Hals the Elder (, , ; – 26 August 1666) was a Dutch Golden Age painter, chiefly of individual and group portraits and of genre works, who lived and worked in Haarlem.
Hals played an important role in the evolution of 17th-century group ...
in 1641
File:Ferdinand Bol 01.JPG, The six regents and the beadle of the ''Nieuwezijds Huiszittenhuis'' in Amsterdam, painted by Ferdinand Bol
Ferdinand Bol (24 June 1616 – 24 August 1680) was a Dutch painter, etcher and draftsman. Although his surviving work is rare, it displays Rembrandt's influence; like his master, Bol favored historical subjects, portraits, numerous self-port ...
in 1657
File:SB 4844-De regentessen van het Burgerweeshuis.jpg, Female regents of the ''Burgerweeshuis'' in Amsterdam, painted by Adriaen Backer
Adriaen Backer (ca 1635, Amsterdam — buried 23 May 1684, Amsterdam) was a Dutch Golden Age portrait painter, active in Amsterdam and Haarlem.
Biography
Backer was the son of the Mennonite Tjerk Adriaensz and the Remonstrant Marritje Dootsho ...
in 1683
File:1731 Het groepsportret op het schilderij toont de regenten van het Utrechtse Stadsambachtskinderhuis in.jpg, Regents of the ''Stadsambachtskinderhuis'' orphanage in Utrecht
Utrecht ( , , ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city and a List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, pro ...
, painted by Jan Maurits Quinkhard
Jan Maurits Quinkhard (28 January 1688 – 11 November 1772) was an 18th-century painter and print designer from the Northern Netherlands.
Biography
Quinkhard was born in the town of Rees, Germany, Rees, near Cleves. He was a Dutch painter and ...
in 1731
File:Frans Decker - portrait of the regents of the Proveniershuis in Haarlem FHM01 OS-I-63 W.JPG, Regents of the ''Proveniershuis
The Proveniershuis is a hofje and former schutterij on the Grote Houtstraat in Haarlem, Netherlands.
The complex of buildings surrounds a rectangular garden taking up a city block that is on the Haarlem hofje route. Unlike hofjes that were meant ...
'' retirement home in Haarlem, painted by Frans Decker
Frans Decker (1684 – 1751) was an 18th-century painter from the Northern Netherlands.
Biography
Decker was born in 1684.
He was a painter whose pictures possess great merit, and are to be met with in almost every collection. He is stated to h ...
in 1736
See also
* Portrait painting
Portrait Painting is a genre in painting, where the intent is to represent a specific human subject. The term 'portrait painting' can also describe the actual painted portrait. Portraitists may create their work by commission, for public and pr ...
References
{{reflist
*
Portrait art
Visual arts genres
Art of the Dutch Golden Age