1654 in art

The Goldfinch by Carel Fabritius, 1654.

Young Man in a Fur Cap, self-portrait of Carel Fabritius, not long before his death in the Delft Explosion.

Events

• October 12 – The Delft Explosion destroys the city of Delft, killing painter Carel Fabritius and destroying his home, studio and most of his paintings: only five are known to exist. Egbert van der Poel produces paintings of the explosion.

Paintings

• Carel Fabritius paints his Young Man in a Fur Cap and The Goldfinch, showing use of lighting effects with a bright background.
• Rembrandt completes Bathsheba at Her Bath and Woman Bathing in a Stream (both featuring his mistress Hendrickje) and paints a portrait of Jan Six.
• Bartholomeus van der Helst paints The Van Aras Family

Births

• February 24 – Bartolomeo Altomonte, Italian painter (died 1783)
• March 10 – Giuseppe Bartolomeo Chiari – Italian painter of frescoes (died 1727)
• November 2 – Giuseppe Passeri, Italian painter active in his native city of Rome (died 1714)
• November 23 - Jan van Kessel, junior, Flemish-Spanish painter (died 1708)
• December 10 – Giovanni Gioseffo dal Sole, landscape painter and engraver from Bologna (died 1719)
• date unknown
  • Antonio Bellucci (or Antonijus Belutis), Italian painter from Treviso (died 1726)
  • Bartolomeo Guidobono, Italian painter active mainly in Northern Italy (died 1709)
  • Francisco Leonardoni, Italian painter active mainly in Spain (died 1711)
  • Giacomo del Po, Italian painter of emblematical and allegorical subjects (died 1726)
  • Giacomo Antonio Ponsonelli, Italian Rococo sculptor (died 1735)
  • Michelangelo Ricciolino, Italian church painter of the Baroque period (died 1715)
• probable – Herman Moll, engraver (died 1732)

Deaths

• January 17 — Paulus Potter, Dutch painter specializing in animals in landscapes (born 1625)
• January 23 – Thomas Willeboirts Bosschaert, painter (born 1613)
• February 8 — Luca Ferrari, Italian painter (born 1605)
• April 5 – Lorenzo Garbieri, Italian painter (born 1580)
• June 10 — Alessandro Algardi, Italian sculptor (born 1598)
• October 12 – Carel Fabritius, Dutch painter (born 1622)
• date unknown
  • Giacomo Apollonio, Italian painter (born 1584)
  • Baccio Ciarpi, Italian painter (born 1574)
  • Nicolaes de Giselaer, Dutch painter and draughtsman (born 1583)
  • Cristóbal Vela, Spanish Baroque painter and gilder (born 1588)