Dutch Realist School
Genre Paintings of the Utrecht and Delft Movements.
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Genre Painting: Dutch Realist School

Due to the lack of patronage for religious history painting and sculpture, seventeenth century Holland witnessed the emergence of a new type of art. Small-scale, and meticulously detailed, its main focus was the creation of genre painting, landscapes and still lifes. Created for decoration and investment (art collecting became a major activity), these artworks heralded the rise of easel-art as the dominant art form from the Baroque era onwards. The Dutch Realist movement encompassed several schools, including the Utrecht School (established 1610), and the Delft School (founded 1650). Despite its name, Dutch Realism incorporated strands of complex symbolism in its paintings, adding narrative to its precise naturalism. Thus it was by no means a purely sentimental form of art. Even so, the 17th century saw a significant growth in Dutch maritime commerce and a consequent rise in affluence among the middle classes, for which genre painting had a strong appeal in its reflection of their prosperity and lifestyle.

Notable Realist Painters

Famous artists of the Dutch Realist school include the Old Masters: Jan Vermeer, Hendrick Terbrugghen, Gerrit Dou, Nicolaes Maes, Adriaen Van Ostade, Paulus Potter, Gerard Terborch, Jan Steen, Pieter de Hooch, and Gabriel Metsu.

Jan Vermeer (1632-75)

Unrecognized in his lifetime, the Delft artist Jan Vermeer is considered the greatest of all Dutch genre-painters. Although only 35 of his paintings are known, they include masterpieces like: The Little Street (c.1657), The Milkmaid (c.1658), Woman Holding a Balance (c.1663), The Artist's Studio (c.1665), The Lacemaker (c.1669) and Lady Seated at a Virginial (c.1673).

Despite his prodigious talents, Vermeer died in debt at the age of 42. He remained in obscurity until his 'discovery' in the late 19th century.

Other Dutch Genre Scene Artists

The foremost member of the Utrecht school, Hendrick Terbrugghen (1588-1629) included genre scenes in his repertoire, focusing on the treatment of light. His works include: Flute Players (1621) and Lute Player Carousing with a Young Woman. The Leyden artist Gerrit Dou (1613-75) was Rembrandt's first pupil, and specialised in small paintings with a glassy finish and hidden symbolism. Works include: The Village Grocer (1647). Nicolaes Maes (1634-93) from Dordrecht, was known for his early depictions of 'below-stairs' servant life, as well as sleeping women and kitchen utensils. The Haarlem artist Adriaen Van Ostade (1610-85) specialized in genre scenes of peasants at home or in taverns. His key works include: Rustic Concert (1638), A Peasant Courting an Elderly Woman (1653) and An Alchemist (1661). Famous Dutch animalier artists (painters of animals) include the great still life painter Frans Snyders (1579-1657), as well as Paulus Potter (1625-54) from Amsterdam who was noted for his pictures of cows, horses and sheep, as well as his vanitas still lifes. An example of his work is The Young Bull (1647).

Gerard Terborch/Ter Borch (1617-81) was one of the most acclaimed genre-painters of the Dutch school, painting with a keen eye and great affection for his subjects. His works include: The Message (1658), and A Lady at Her Toilet (1668). Jan Steen (1626-79), the landlord of a tavern, painted boistrous crowded scenes in homes and inns, often containing overt messages about the vices of idleness, inebriation and promiscuity. Examples of his fine art painting include: A Young Woman Playing the Harpsichord (1659), Skittle Players Outside an Inn (c.1660) and The Christening Feast (1664). The Delft genre-artist Pieter de Hooch (1629-83) began with scenes of peasants and soldiers, progressed to sunlit courtyards and interiors of the middle class and ended by depicting homes of the haut-bourgeoisie. Then he went mad. Gabriel Metsu (1629-1667) from Amsterdam was a top-class painter of dark Dutch interiors, whose works frequently included a number of symbolic items.

Note: Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn (1606-69)

Curiously, Rembrandt - the most famous of all Dutch painters - was not a genre-painter. Instead he was both a grand manner artist with a passion for portraying dramatic moments from Biblical history, and an acute portraitist whose stunningly honest portraits and self-portraits capture the complete range of human emotion.

For details of famous genre-paintings from Ireland, see Irish Genre-Painters.

• For more about the different types of painting (portraits, landscapes, still-lifes etc) see: Painting Genres.
• For details of landscape and portraiture in Ireland, see: Irish Art Guide

• How to Update This Mini Review of Dutch Realist School of Genre Painting

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