Workshop of Maerten Jacobsz. van Heemskerck
Le triomphe de la Guerre/ The triumph of war
Oak panel
69 x 100 cm
Private collection
Maerten van Heemskerck or Marten Jacobsz Heemskerk van Veen (1 June 1498 – 1 October 1574) was a Dutch portrait and religious painter, who spent most of his career in Haarlem. He was a pupil of Jan van Scorel, and adopted his teacher's Italian-influenced style. He spent the years 1532–6 in Italy. He produced many designs for engravers, and is especially known for his depictions of the Wonders of the World.
Allegory of Innocence and Guile, c. 1520/1574
Oil on Panel
w70.8 x h92.7 cm
The Bowes Museum
In 1532 van Heemskerck left Haarlem to work in Italy where he studied the Renaissance masters, taking a particular interest in the art of Michelangelo. In 1535 he returned to his native country where he continued to paint in the Italian style. The elegant jewellery depicted in this painting is a fine example of a Renaissance goldsmith’s work.
The subject of the painting is a personification of a verse from St Matthew's Gospel (10:16) 'Be ye, therefore, wise as serpents and harmless as doves'. Subjects like these were painted for public buildings, such as courts, as a reminder of standards expected from people in high office. More on this painting
Maarten van Heemskerck
Visitation, Virgin and Elisabeth
Oil on panel
Width 100 cm, Height 175 cm
Stichting Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen
The Visitation. Mary visits her relative Elizabeth; they are both pregnant. Mary is pregnant with Jesus and Elizabeth is pregnant with John the Baptist. Elizabeth was in the sixth month before Mary came. Mary stayed three months, and most scholars hold she stayed for the birth of John. The apparition of the angel, mentioned in Matthew, may have taken place then to end the tormenting doubts of Joseph regarding Mary's maternity.
In Catholicism, it is held that the purpose of this visit was to bring divine grace to both Elizabeth and her unborn child. Even though he was still in his mother's womb, John became aware of the presence of Christ, and leapt for joy as he was cleansed from original sin and filled with divine grace. Elizabeth also responded and recognised the presence of Jesus, and thus Mary exercised her function as mediatrix between God and man for the first time. More on The Visitation
When closed the wings of this triptych show the Visitation, the meeting of Mary and Elisabeth, both of whom are expecting a child. The middle panel is missing. In accordance with the story, Elisabeth is depicted as a richly dressed somewhat older woman. The detailed figure of Elisabeth was painted by Van Heemskerck himself, Mary was painted by an assistant or student. More on this painting
Maerten (1498-1574) Van Heemskerck
Christ appearing to St. Peter on the sea of Tiberias, c. 1567 - 1567
Oil on panel
Length: 69.9 cm, Width: 124.5 cm
The Bowes Museum
The painting depicts an episode from St John's Gospel which follows Christ's resurrection. On their return to Galilee the disciples recognise Christ after he helped them catch a miraculously large number of fish. Jesus stands next to a fire where a fish is being cooked. He awaits Peter, who has left his boat and walks towards the shore through the sea, his arms raised in a gesture of joy and recognition. In the background the daily activities of a fishing village continue in a fantastical landscape with ruins, which is painted in the tradition of Joachim Patinir. More on this painting
According to his biography by Karel van Mander, he began his artistic training with the painter Cornelius Willemsz in Haarlem, but was recalled to Heemskerk by his father to work on the family farm. However, having contrived an argument with his father he left again, this time for Delft, where he studied under Jan Lucasz, before moving on to Haarlem, where he became a pupil of Jan van Scorel.
According to a legend, Luke the Evangelist made a portrait of Mary and the Christ Child. For this reason, Luke became the patron saint of the Luke Guilds, the professional associations of artists. Maarten Van Heemskerck made this painting as a gift for the Haarlem Guild of Luke, as can be seen from the note at the bottom left. It was intended for above the guild altar in the Grote Kerk. The painter took this into account by depicting the scene as if one were looking at it from below. A baker from Haarlem posed for Lucas, and the man with the laurel wreath – the 'inspiration' – would be Van Heemskerck himself. In art, inspiration takes precedence over handicraft, seems to be the message of this painting. More on this painting
Heemskerck painted this first altarpiece before he left Haarlem for Italy in 1532. It was cut down and sawn in two, and has since been rejoined, but is still short.
Heemskerck then went to lodge at the home of the wealthy Pieter Jan Foppesz. They knew each other because Foppesz owned land in Heemskerk. The artist painted him in a now famous family portrait, considered the first of its kind in a long line of Dutch family paintings. His other works for Foppesz included two life size figures symbolising the Sun and the Moon on a bedstead, and a picture of Adam and Eve. His next home was in Haarlem.
Maarten van Heemskerck
In the centre foreground St John the Baptist, who is wearing his distinctive camel-hair tunic and leather belt, is baptising Christ on the bank of the river Jordan (Matthew 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22; John 1:32-34). The prominent tree behind Christ, a possible reference to the tree of life,8 separates the picture into two parts. On both sides of Christ people awaiting their baptism are getting undressed on the banks of the river. The dove of the Holy Ghost, revealing Christ’s divinity, is flying down towards him from an opening in the sky. More on this painting
Before setting off for Italy on a Grand Tour in 1532, Heemskerck painted a scene of St. Luke painting the Virgin for the altar of St. Luke in the Bavokerk.
He travelled around the whole of northern and central Italy, stopping at Rome.
It is evident of the facility with which he acquired the rapid execution of a scene-painter that he was selected to collaborate with Antonio da Sangallo the Younger, Battista Franco and Francesco de' Rossi (Il Salviati) on the redecoration of the Porta San Sebastiano at Rome as a triumphal arch (5 April 1536) in honour of Charles V.
While in Rome where he made numerous drawings of classical sculpture and architecture, many of which survive in two sketchbooks now in the Kupferstichkabinett Berlin. He was to use them as source material throughout the rest of his career. Among these are the Capitoline Brutus, van Heemskerck being the first known artist to make a sketch of this now famous bust.
On his return to the Netherlands in 1536, he settled back at Haarlem, where he became president of the Haarlem Guild of Saint Luke (in 1540), married twice (his first wife and child died during childbirth), and secured a large and lucrative practice.
In 1546 Maarten van Heemskerck was commissioned by the Drapeniersgilde (guild of the wool merchants) to make two painted 'doors' for the altar of the guild in the Grote- or Sint Bavokerk. These were added to an already existing center piece. The Annunciation to Mary was to be painted on the outside and the Adoration of the Shepherds and Adoration of the Kings on the inside. After the reform in 1578, the side panels became the property of the city and were given a place in the Prinsenhof. The middle part has been lost, when exactly this happened is not known. In 1590, Cornelis van Haarlem was commissioned by the city council to make a new centerpiece for Maarten van Heemskerck's side panels: the Kindermoord. More on this painting
The alteration in his style, brought about by his experience of Italy was not universally admired. According to van Mander, "in the opinion of some of the best judges he had not improved it, except in one particular, that his outline was more graceful than before".
The gods of Olympus have just finished creating some of the first things in existence. And Momus, front and center, has arrived to critique their show-and-tell. To Hephaestus, who's just created mankind, he says that we would have been better crafted with a little door in the chest so that our secrets and thoughts could be seen. Momus' other criticisms aren't quite as existential. Poseidon's bull should've been made with the horns in front of the eyes. Aphrodite's shoes squeak and she talks too much. And Athena missed the boat entirely when she created the first home. More on this painting
He painted large altarpieces for his friend, the art maecenas and later catholic martyr of the Protestant Reformation, Cornelis Muys [nl] (also known as Musius). Muys had returned from a period in France to the Netherlands in 1538 and became prior of the St. Agatha cloister in Delft (later became the Prinsenhof).[6] This lucrative and high-profile work in Delft earned Heemskerck a commission for an altarpiece in the Nieuwe Kerk (Delft) for their Guild of St. Luke. In 1553 he became curate of the Sint-Bavokerk, where he served for 22 years (until the Protestant reformation). In 1572 he left Haarlem for Amsterdam, to avoid the siege of Haarlem which the Spaniards laid to the place.
Maarten van Heemskerck (1498–1574)
St. Luke painting the Virgin, c. 1532
Oil on panel
168 x 235 cm
Frans Hals Museum
Heemskerck painted this first altarpiece before he left Haarlem for Italy in 1532. It was cut down and sawn in two, and has since been rejoined, but is still short.
Marteen Van Heemskerck (1498 - 1574)
Saint Luke Painting the Virgin , 16th century
Oil on wood
207.5 x 144.2 cm
Museum of Fine Arts of Rennes
The figures and accessories are executed with a thoroughness characteristic of northern art. The face of Saint Luke is also reminiscent of a portrait. In the background, in a courtyard, sculptors are busy. This space is adorned with several antique fragmentary statues that the painter observed during his stay in Rome. The echo between the painted figures and the sculptures is underlined by the pose of the Virgin which is inspired by that of the statue located in the center of the courtyard. More on this painting
The baptism of Christ, c. 1560 - c. 1565
Oil on panel
h 63.7cm Ń w 92cm
Rijksmuseum
In the centre foreground St John the Baptist, who is wearing his distinctive camel-hair tunic and leather belt, is baptising Christ on the bank of the river Jordan (Matthew 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22; John 1:32-34). The prominent tree behind Christ, a possible reference to the tree of life,8 separates the picture into two parts. On both sides of Christ people awaiting their baptism are getting undressed on the banks of the river. The dove of the Holy Ghost, revealing Christ’s divinity, is flying down towards him from an opening in the sky. More on this painting
Before setting off for Italy on a Grand Tour in 1532, Heemskerck painted a scene of St. Luke painting the Virgin for the altar of St. Luke in the Bavokerk.
He travelled around the whole of northern and central Italy, stopping at Rome.
Maerten Jacobsz van Heemskerck
Triptych with Ecce Homo, c. 1559/1560
Oil on panel
Panel, centre 218,5 × 150 cm; side panels 218,5 × 67 cm
Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem, Netherlands
In the centre panel a tortured Christ stands between the Roman governor Pontius Pilate (right) and two executioners. Jesus was accused of blasphemy. Pilate presents the tortured but, according to Pilate, innocent prisoner to a group of Jews with the words, ‘Behold the man’ (in Latin ‘Ecce homo’). High priests and their followers demand crucifixion. Eventually Pilate gives way to them. Van Heemskerck leaves out the Jews: the viewers are thus confronted more directly with Jesus’s suffering and as it were themselves form the crowd. The side panels depict the donors, with their patron saints Christopher (left) and Martha (right).
The triptych belongs with Heemskerck’s triptych ‘The Entombment’ (now in Brussels): they originally hung together in a Delft church or monastery. These passion retables may have been donated by people who survived the plague epidemic that ravaged Delft in 1557-58. Research on the occasion of the restoration of the triptych in in 1996-97 revealed that there was originally much more blood on Christ’s body. More on this painting
It is evident of the facility with which he acquired the rapid execution of a scene-painter that he was selected to collaborate with Antonio da Sangallo the Younger, Battista Franco and Francesco de' Rossi (Il Salviati) on the redecoration of the Porta San Sebastiano at Rome as a triumphal arch (5 April 1536) in honour of Charles V.
Maerten Van Heemskerck (Heemskerck, 1498 - Haarlem, 1574)
ADAM AND EVE, c. 1550
Oil on wood
177.5 x 50 cm
MUSEUMS OF THE CITY OF STRASBOURG
Adam and Eve, according to the creation myth of the Abrahamic religions, were the first man and woman and the ancestors of all humans. The story of Adam and Eve is central to the belief that YHWH created human beings to live in a paradise on earth, although they fell away from that state and formed the present world full of suffering and injustice. It provides the basis for the belief that humanity is in essence a single family, with everyone descended from a single pair of original ancestors. It also provides much of the scriptural basis for the doctrines of the fall of man and original Sin, important beliefs in Christianity, although not generally shared by Judaism or Islam. More on Adam and Eve
Maerten Van Heemskerck (Heemskerck, 1498 - Haarlem, 1574)
The fall of man: the snake offers the apple to Eve, Eve offers the fruit to Adam, circa 1530
Oil on canvas
Private collection Robert Gascoyne-Cecil (7th Marquess of Salisbury), Hatfield, Hatfield House
On his return to the Netherlands in 1536, he settled back at Haarlem, where he became president of the Haarlem Guild of Saint Luke (in 1540), married twice (his first wife and child died during childbirth), and secured a large and lucrative practice.
Maerten van Heemskerck
Side Panels of the Drapers' Altar, c. 1591
Oil paint on panel
261.5 x 122.5 cm
Frans Hals Museum
The alteration in his style, brought about by his experience of Italy was not universally admired. According to van Mander, "in the opinion of some of the best judges he had not improved it, except in one particular, that his outline was more graceful than before".
Maarten van Heemskerck (1498–1574)
Momos Reproaches the Works of the Gods, c. 1561
Oak wood Edit this at Wikidata
Height: 120 cm (47.2 in); Width: 174 cm (68.5 in)
Gemäldegalerie
Studio of Maerten Jacobsz. van Heemskerck
Mars, Venus and Cupid
Oil on panel
13 1⁄4 x 7 5⁄8 in. (33.5 x 19.5 cm.)
Private collection
In ancient Roman religion and myth, Mars was the god of war and also an agricultural guardian, a combination characteristic of early Rome. He was the son of Jupiter and Juno, and he was the most prominent of the military gods in the religion of the Roman army. More on Mars
Venus and Love/ Venus and Cupid. Different tales exist about the origin of Venus and Cupid. Some say that Venus, the goddess of love and beauty, had a love affair with Mars, the god of war. Out of this relationship, Cupid was born.
Cupid has attributes from both of his parents. Like his mother he is considered to be the god of love, or more precisely, the god of falling in love. He is portrayed as an innocent little child with bow and arrows. He shoots arrows to the heart, and awakening a love that you’re powerless to resist.
Venus and Cupid are often shown in intimate poses, reflecting the unique love between mother and child. More Venus and Love
Maarten van Heemskerck (Heemskerck 1498-1574 Haarlem)
The Judgement of Paris
oil on panel
10½ x 13 1/8 in. (26.7 x 33.5 cm.)
Private collection
The judgment of Paris was a contest between the three most beautiful goddesses of Olympos--Aphrodite, Hera and Athena--for the prize of a golden apple addressed "To the Fairest."
The story began with the wedding of Peleus and Thetis which all the gods had been invited to attend except for Eris, goddess of discord. When Eris appeared at the festivities she was turned away and in her anger cast the golden apple amongst the assembled goddesses addressed "To the Fairest." Three goddesses laid claim to the apple--Aphrodite, Hera and Athena. Zeus was asked to mediate and he commanded Hermes to lead the three goddesses to Paris of Troy to decide the issue. The three goddesses appearing before the shepherd prince, each offering him gifts for favour. He chose Aphrodite, swayed by her promise to bestow upon him Helene, the most beautiful woman, for wife. The subsequent abduction of Helene led directly to the Trojan War and the fall of the city. More on The judgment of Paris
Maarten van Heemskerck (1498–1574) Blue pencil.svg wikidata:Q538350
Portrait of, possibly Anna Codde, wife of Pieter Gerritsz Bicker, c. 1529
Oil on oak wood
Height: 86.6 cm (34 in); Width: 66.2 cm (26 in)
Rijksmuseum
The woman is seated behind her spinning-wheel. According to the carved scroll on the bottom of the frame she is 26 years old. She is gazing at a point in the distance. The little basket on the wall is probably holding the balls of yarn already spun. Bruyn has pointed out the symbolism of the spinning-wheel, which must have been clear to the contemporary viewer. Spinning was a well-known symbol of the virtuous woman, as stated in Proverbs 31:13 and 19, a widely referenced and illustrated text at the time. More on this painting
The companion-piece of this painting, the portrait of Pieter Bicker Gerritsz. is also in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.
The traditional identification of the couple is probably incorrect, the two portraits represent a young and hard-working couple, they were painted probably to mark their betrothal.
In Amsterdam he made a will, which has been preserved. It shows that he had lived long enough and prosperously enough to make a fortune. At his death, he left money and land in trust to the orphanage of Haarlem, with interest to be paid yearly to any couple who should be willing to perform the marriage ceremony on the slab of his tomb in the cathedral of Haarlem. It was a superstition in Catholic Holland that a marriage so celebrated would secure the peace of the dead within the tomb. More on Maerten van Heemskerck
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