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Jan Cornelisz Vermeyen: "The Holy Family", c. 1528-1530. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam (The Netherlands).
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The first guest of our blog is this surprisingly athletic baby Christ painted by the Dutch artist Jan Cornelisz Vermeyen (1500-1559). The artwork represents the topic of the Holy Family: in the centre of the painting, the Virgin Mary is holding Jesus, while Saint Joseph is looking at the spectator from the upper right corner. The Child is represented as a small-sized adult, with a very strong and muscular body. It is probably the right panel of a diptych and is the only signed painting from Vermeyen’s hand that has come down to our times. This artwork can be categorised into the Northern Renaissance tradition and it shows a strong influence of Italian Mannerism. The result of the contact between the Italian and the Flemish traditions can be seen in Vermeyen’s work, where the sculptural body of Jesus is clearly influenced by the knowledge of Michelangelo’s art. It is believed that Jan Vermeyen travelled to Italy in 1539, where he had the opportunity to study the work of the Italian Renaissance masters.
Little is known about Vermeyen’s life and only a few securely identified artworks have survived. His early works can be stylistically related to Jan Gossaert and Jan van Scorel, two Dutch painters who travelled to Italy and are considered the introducers of Italian Renaissance forms in the Netherlands and Flanders. They added in their paintings classical elements such as nudes, ancient architectures and imaginary landscapes. The similitudes between their painting and the early work of younger Vermeyen suggest an apprenticeship period in one (or both) of these masters’ ateliers.
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| Jan Gossaert: "Danae". 1527. Alte Pinakothek, Munich (Germany). |
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| Jan van Scorel: "Christ Blessing". First half of the XVIth century. Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid (Spain). |
Between 1525 and 1530, Jan Vermeyen was in the service of Margaret of Austria at the court in Mechelen, where he mainly painted portraits of her family and other relatives. In 1534, he moved to Spain and joined the group of artists that worked at the court of Charles V. He took part in the Emperor’s military expedition to Tunis in 1535. During this trip, he drew many sketches that he would later use to produce a series of engravings and tapestry designs. After the fall of Tunis, Vermeyen set out on his trip to Italy, where he got in contact with Michelangelo’s art. In 1539, the documentation pinpoints him again in Spain, helping the painters that were representing the Battle of Tunis in the walls of the Alhambra, in the southern city of Granada. One year later, he followed Charles V back to the Netherlands and established himself in Brussels, where he remained until his death in 1559. During his last period, he focused his artistic career on the production of tapestry designs and engravings. The twelve tapestry cartoons representing the Battle of Tunis that he designed for Mary of Hungary - sister of Charles V - are considered the tipping point of his career. The tapestries were woven in the workshop of Willem de Pannemaker in Brussels and became the flagship of the Habsburg dynasty, as they celebrate Emperor Charles V as the defender of the Catholic faith.
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| Jan Cornelisz Vermeyen: "The Conquest of Tunis". 1546-1550. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna (Austria). |
And... that is the story behind the first ugly art baby of the blog! Feel free to share your reaction, ask any questions or give your opinion in the comments section below. And don't forget to follow Ugly Art Babies on our social media profiles, we'll share some extra daily content. Stay tuned for our next blog post!
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