- 26
Jan Josef Horemans the Elder Antwerp 1682 - 1759
Description
- Jan Josef Horemans the elder
- a farm scene with a woman putting apples in a basket, other figures and a cart in the background near a barn;a market scene with a vendor selling fruit and vegetables to maidservants, two donkeys in the background and a dog in the foreground, all near a townwall
- a pair, both signed and dated, the former lower right: J Horemans 1756, the latter lower left: J Horemans/1756
- both oil on canvas, in carved and giltwood frames
Catalogue Note
Born in Antwerp in 1682 as a son of notary Jan Josef Horemans first went to study with the sculptor Michael van der Voort the Elder and later with the genre painter Jan van Pee. His son, by the same name of Jan Josef II (1714-after 1790), also became a painter as did Horemans the Elder's brother Peter Jacob Horemans (1700-1776; see lot 98). Horemans the Elder became a master in the Guild of St. Luke in 1706-7.
Horemans'compositions show strong stylistic influences from the 17th Century Flemish genre painters such as David Teniers the Younger. He executed mostly genre scenes, a few portraits and a large number of small anecdotal pictures of contemporary life that were highly prized by his contemporaries. Horemans depicted the daily life of the 18th Century Antwerp population, as can be seen in the present pair of market scenes, which reveal a strong sense of affinity for realism with their bright, strong colouring. This impressive pair, dated 1756, are painted late in the artist's career when his style had fully developed.