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The Vrouwenhuis on Melkmarkt 53 in the Dutch city of
The house originally faced the harbour, near the old weigh house that served as a
/ref> The harbour was part of the ''Grote Aa'' waterway, a tributary of the Zwarte Water running through the city, which was filled in after
by Saskia Zwiers The facade of his house was improved in the early 17th century, probably according to his instructions. His daughter, the painter Aleijda Wolfsen, was born there on 22 October 1648. From 1650–1656, he became a representative to the
Accessed 2013-03-18. The extra space was probably also necessary as a studio for Aleijda, who continued to paint after her marriage.Aleida Wolfsen
in
Aleijda was not the only woman painting in Zwolle. Gesina ter Borch lived and worked on the Sassenstraat, and her contemporary
Zwolle
Zwolle () is a city and municipality in the Northeastern Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of Overijssel and the province's second-largest municipality after Enschede with a population of 130,592 as of 1 December 2021. Zwolle is o ...
is a former old age home for women. It is now rented as separate apartment units for students, while housing a small museum on the ground floor that is only accessible by special request.
History
The house originally faced the harbour, near the old weigh house that served as a portage
Portage or portaging (Canada: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a ...
point for ships travelling the IJssel river.History of Melkmarkt (formerly known as Grote Aa)/ref> The harbour was part of the ''Grote Aa'' waterway, a tributary of the Zwarte Water running through the city, which was filled in after
cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...
outbreaks in the 19th century. In the 1572 map of Zwolle a ship is shown moored in front of this house, which was strategically located next to the ''Waterpoort'', a city gate allowing the passage of ships.
Wolfsen family owners
The house was bought in 1645 by the young lawyer Hendrik Wolfsen (1615–1684), the wealthy son of a councilman (''Rijkman'') in Zwolle. Hendrik kept a diary in the 1640s until 1649 when he became magistrate of Zwolle.'Pro memoria': de aantekeningen van Hendrik Wolfsen (1615–1684)by Saskia Zwiers The facade of his house was improved in the early 17th century, probably according to his instructions. His daughter, the painter Aleijda Wolfsen, was born there on 22 October 1648. From 1650–1656, he became a representative to the
Staten Generaal
The States General of the Netherlands ( nl, Staten-Generaal ) is the supreme bicameral legislature of the Netherlands consisting of the Senate () and the House of Representatives (). Both chambers meet at the Binnenhof in The Hague.
The State ...
and stayed for weeks at a time 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 of ...
. In 1657, he moved his family to the Hague when he was promoted to member of the high court of the Duchy of Brabant
The Duchy of Brabant was a State of the Holy Roman Empire established in 1183. It developed from the Landgraviate of Brabant and formed the heart of the historic Low Countries, part of the Burgundian Netherlands from 1430 and of the Habsburg Neth ...
. He kept the house in Zwolle, and when his daughter Aleijda married Pieter Soury (later mayor of Zwolle) in 1667 in Rijswijk
Rijswijk (), formerly known as Ryswick ( ) in English, is a city and municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. Its population was in , and it has an area of , of which is water.
The municipality also includes th ...
, he gave her the house on the Grote Aa in exchange for the couple's possessions in the Hague.
The couple had several children, and in 1680 they made improvements to the house, most notably building the hallway attaching the front house to the rear house, so that they could house their extended family.Vrouwenhuis websiteAccessed 2013-03-18. The extra space was probably also necessary as a studio for Aleijda, who continued to paint after her marriage.Aleida Wolfsen
in
historici.nl
The Huygens Institute for the History of the Netherlands was formed on January 1, 2011 through a merger of the Institute of Dutch History ( nl, 'Instituut voor Nederlandse Geschiedenis', ING) a research institute of the Netherlands Organisation f ...
Her sitting room, the "Grote Sael" (later the regent's room) with its carved mantelpiece, and the carved wood decorations and marble floors in the hallway were all added during Aleijda's lifetime.
Wilhelmus Beurs in Zwolle in 1686
Aleijda was not the only woman painting in Zwolle. Gesina ter Borch lived and worked on the Sassenstraat, and her contemporary Eva van Marle
Eva van Marle may have been the name of a Dutch Golden Age portrait painter who signed with the monogram ''E.M.'', ''EM.F.'' (E.M. fecit) and was active in Zwolle, Overijssel, between 1642 and 1654.Gesina ter Borch
at
in
in the RKD Works by these women dated 1686 are on display in the regent's room. In the frontispiece to a book on painting that Beurs published in 1692 and dedicated to his four pupils, three women are portrayed in a room gazing at three paintings that are the same size as those they created under his instruction. Though Beurs appears to have been very proud of his pupils, whom he taught for 4 years, it is probable that before he arrived in Zwolle they had received instruction from another painter, such as Wolfsen or Ter Borch.Aleida Greve
in
In 1742 Greve died childless, and her old age home for women was created; this is commemorated on the gable stone in the front of the house. The stone was commissioned by Gerrijt Willem Golts, the first regent, who also oversaw the conversion of the complex to homes for 17 (later 12, today 5) single women with a common kitchen. Aleida's sitting room became the regent's room.
The house functioned as a retirement home for women from 1742 when the first inhabitant was Aleida Greve's elderly servant. The director G.W. Golts was a cousin by marriage to Greve, and descendants of their family were regents until 1916, when a new set of regents were appointed. With the increase in public services in the 20th century, the need for private initiatives to help the poor decreased, and the Vrouwenhuis closed as a charitable institution for elderly ladies in 1984. Since 1987, the ground floor and the majority of the oldest part of the house function as a museum, while a few former ladies' rooms are let to young women.
The current director is the artist and art historian Saskia Zwiers, who has conducted research into the paintings and artists of the collection. She has built a period-style dollhouse in the style of Dutch show-dollhouses of the 18th century. The rooms are modelled on the Vrouwenhuis, where it is on display.
106882
record for unsigned ''Seascape with a few ships'' in the RKD
File:Pieter van de Velde - Gezicht op Gibraltar - RCE.jpg, View of
Page 294
''Monumenten in Nederland, Overijssel'', by Ronald Stenvert, Chris Kolman, Ben Olde Meierink, Jan ten Hove, Marieke Knuijt and Ben Kooij, Rijksdienst voor de Monumentenzorg, Zeist, Waanders Uitgevers Zwolle {{Authority control Museums in Overijssel Rijksmonuments in Overijssel Buildings and structures in Zwolle
at
Historici.nl
The Huygens Institute for the History of the Netherlands was formed on January 1, 2011 through a merger of the Institute of Dutch History ( nl, 'Instituut voor Nederlandse Geschiedenis', ING) a research institute of the Netherlands Organisation f ...
Eva van Marlein
historici.nl
The Huygens Institute for the History of the Netherlands was formed on January 1, 2011 through a merger of the Institute of Dutch History ( nl, 'Instituut voor Nederlandse Geschiedenis', ING) a research institute of the Netherlands Organisation f ...
In 1686, the small painting school of Wilhelmus Beurs
Wilhelmus Beurs (1656–1700) was a Dutch Golden Age painter.
Biography
Beurs was born in Dordrecht. According to Houbraken, he was the son of a shoemaker and a quick study who was able to produce a good landscape after only a year's instruc ...
began; his pupils were the half-sisters Cornelia van Marle
Cornelia van Marle (1661–1698), was a Dutch Golden Age painter.
Biography
She was born in Zwolle as the daughter of the beer brewer Herman van Marle and his wife Lamberta Holt. After her father died her mother married another brewer, Geurt ...
and Aleida Greve
Aleida Greve (1670–1742) was an 18th-century painter from the Northern Netherlands known for founding the Vrouwenhuis, Zwolle.
Biography
She was born in Zwolle as the daughter of the largest beer brewer in Zwolle, Geurt Greve (1634-ca.16 ...
, Sophia Holt
Sophia Holt (1658 – 1734), was an 18th-century painter from the Northern Netherlands.
Biography
Holt was born in Zwolle as the daughter of the city secretary Johan Holt.Anna Cornelia Holt
Anna Cornelia Holt (1671–1692), was a late 17th-century painter from the Northern Netherlands.
Biography
She was born in Zwolle as the daughter of Herman Holt (1643–1672), councilman of Zwolle, and Armarenta Holt (d. 1714).
.Wilhelmus Beursin the RKD Works by these women dated 1686 are on display in the regent's room. In the frontispiece to a book on painting that Beurs published in 1692 and dedicated to his four pupils, three women are portrayed in a room gazing at three paintings that are the same size as those they created under his instruction. Though Beurs appears to have been very proud of his pupils, whom he taught for 4 years, it is probable that before he arrived in Zwolle they had received instruction from another painter, such as Wolfsen or Ter Borch.Aleida Greve
in
historici.nl
The Huygens Institute for the History of the Netherlands was formed on January 1, 2011 through a merger of the Institute of Dutch History ( nl, 'Instituut voor Nederlandse Geschiedenis', ING) a research institute of the Netherlands Organisation f ...
Aleida Greve
Aleijda Wolfsen died in childbirth with her fifteenth pregnancy in 1692. The house on the Melkmarkt was purchased from her husband's heirs in 1706 byAleida Greve
Aleida Greve (1670–1742) was an 18th-century painter from the Northern Netherlands known for founding the Vrouwenhuis, Zwolle.
Biography
She was born in Zwolle as the daughter of the largest beer brewer in Zwolle, Geurt Greve (1634-ca.16 ...
and her younger sisters. An unmarried aunt came to live with them and at age 49 in 1718, Greve drew up her will, in which she outlined her plan to use her legacy to create a retirement home for 17 women of the Dutch Reformed faith and their governess.
Old age home
In 1742 Greve died childless, and her old age home for women was created; this is commemorated on the gable stone in the front of the house. The stone was commissioned by Gerrijt Willem Golts, the first regent, who also oversaw the conversion of the complex to homes for 17 (later 12, today 5) single women with a common kitchen. Aleida's sitting room became the regent's room.
The house functioned as a retirement home for women from 1742 when the first inhabitant was Aleida Greve's elderly servant. The director G.W. Golts was a cousin by marriage to Greve, and descendants of their family were regents until 1916, when a new set of regents were appointed. With the increase in public services in the 20th century, the need for private initiatives to help the poor decreased, and the Vrouwenhuis closed as a charitable institution for elderly ladies in 1984. Since 1987, the ground floor and the majority of the oldest part of the house function as a museum, while a few former ladies' rooms are let to young women.
The current director is the artist and art historian Saskia Zwiers, who has conducted research into the paintings and artists of the collection. She has built a period-style dollhouse in the style of Dutch show-dollhouses of the 18th century. The rooms are modelled on the Vrouwenhuis, where it is on display.
Art collection
Aleida Greve's will stipulated that her sitting room with all of its paintings and furnishings had to remain intact, and this is the reason that this art collection with all of its curiosities still exists in its entirety as a "time capsule" of a lady's art gallery. It is not clear if the paintings on display in the house were all painted or collected by the sisters or if some of the paintings had been left by Aleida Wolfsen. The most famous painter represented in the collection besides the ladies themselves isPeter van den Velde
Peter van de Velde or Peter van den Velde was a Flemish marine painter who was active in Antwerp. Some art historians believe that the long lifespan attributed to this artist could hide two artists operating under the same name, possibly a fathe ...
, who signed his ''View of Gibraltar'' and is the probable painter behind two more marine views in the collection.record for unsigned ''Seascape with a few ships'' in the RKD
Gallery
Gibraltar
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, anthem = " God Save the King"
, song = " Gibraltar Anthem"
, image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg
, map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe
, map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green
, mapsize =
, image_map2 = Gib ...
in the regent's room, by Peter van de Velde
Peter van de Velde or Peter van den Velde was a Flemish marine painter who was active in Antwerp. Some art historians believe that the long lifespan attributed to this artist could hide two artists operating under the same name, possibly a fa ...
File:Regentenkamer - Zwolle - 20230047 - RCE.jpg, Regent's room in 1981
References
* ''Het Vrouwenhuis te Zwolle'', Jan ten Hove, Zwolle, 1994Page 294
''Monumenten in Nederland, Overijssel'', by Ronald Stenvert, Chris Kolman, Ben Olde Meierink, Jan ten Hove, Marieke Knuijt and Ben Kooij, Rijksdienst voor de Monumentenzorg, Zeist, Waanders Uitgevers Zwolle {{Authority control Museums in Overijssel Rijksmonuments in Overijssel Buildings and structures in Zwolle