Description
Hendrik AERTS (1565/1575?1603) Architectural Palace with Saint Paul in Athens Canvas, signed lower left on the base of a column: Hendrik Aerts and dated 1600 (Old restorations.) Height 112 cm; Width: 170 cm The Greek inscription on the base at right means "Unknown gods" (Acts 17,23). The scene depicted is the episode of Paul in Athens recounted in the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 17, verses 16 to 34, in which the apostle proclaims the Gospel before the Areopagus, referring to an altar dedicated "to the unknown gods". Although little is known about the life of Hendrik Aerts, we do know that the artist, who was a pupil of Hans Vredeman de Vries, accompanied the latter to the court of Rudolf II in Prague. Throughout his life, he worked perpetuate the style initiated by Vredeman de Vries, who made a major contribution to the renewal of the between 1560 and 1600. His fantastic views of architectural palaces, with their multiple perspectives, bear witness to the extreme refinement in vogue in the Northern Netherlands in the second half of the 16th century. century. They paved the way for artists such as Pieter Neefs, Dirk Van Delen and Daniel de Blieck. Our painting can be compared with one sold in Vienna (dorotheum) on April 25, 2017, no. 30 (panel 65 x 89cm); the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam also has a similar painting, dated 1602 (canvas 93 x 127.5 cm). Related bibliography: B.M. Vermet, Architectuurschilders in Danzig, Hendrik Aerts en Hans en Paul Vredeman de Vries, in Gentse Bijdragen tot de Kunstgescheinedis en Oudheidkunde, 31, 1996, pp. 37-38. H. Borggrefe et al. Tussen Stadspaleizen en Luchtkatelen, Hans Vredeman de Vries en de Renaissance, Ghent Amsterdam 2002, p 340.
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Hendrik AERTS (1565/1575?1603) Architectural Palace with Saint Paul in Athens Canvas, signed lower left on the base of a column: Hendrik Aerts and dated 1600 (Old restorations.) Height 112 cm; Width: 170 cm The Greek inscription on the base at right means "Unknown gods" (Acts 17,23). The scene depicted is the episode of Paul in Athens recounted in the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 17, verses 16 to 34, in which the apostle proclaims the Gospel before the Areopagus, referring to an altar dedicated "to the unknown gods". Although little is known about the life of Hendrik Aerts, we do know that the artist, who was a pupil of Hans Vredeman de Vries, accompanied the latter to the court of Rudolf II in Prague. Throughout his life, he worked perpetuate the style initiated by Vredeman de Vries, who made a major contribution to the renewal of the between 1560 and 1600. His fantastic views of architectural palaces, with their multiple perspectives, bear witness to the extreme refinement in vogue in the Northern Netherlands in the second half of the 16th century. century. They paved the way for artists such as Pieter Neefs, Dirk Van Delen and Daniel de Blieck. Our painting can be compared with one sold in Vienna (dorotheum) on April 25, 2017, no. 30 (panel 65 x 89cm); the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam also has a similar painting, dated 1602 (canvas 93 x 127.5 cm). Related bibliography: B.M. Vermet, Architectuurschilders in Danzig, Hendrik Aerts en Hans en Paul Vredeman de Vries, in Gentse Bijdragen tot de Kunstgescheinedis en Oudheidkunde, 31, 1996, pp. 37-38. H. Borggrefe et al. Tussen Stadspaleizen en Luchtkatelen, Hans Vredeman de Vries en de Renaissance, Ghent Amsterdam 2002, p 340.
