Theodoor Boeyermans

Theodoor Boeyermans, Antwerp, Nurse of Painters, 1665 (188 x 454 cm; Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Antwerp). This was one of three large paintings executed for the meeting hall of the Antwerp Academy, which had been recently founded through the instigation of David Teniers the Younger. This allegorical painting promotes the city's recent artistic past through the portraits of Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck, who watch over the young students practising the arts. In the center is the allegorical "Nurse of painters", Antwerp. Chronos accompanies young students who present their artwork, while the river god Scaldis (specifically referring to Antwerp's river Scheldt) with his cornucopia, symbolizes the wealth and bounty of the city's artistic heritage.

Theodoor Boeyermans (10 November 1620– January 1678) was a Flemish Baroque painter from Antwerp who painted classicizing works informed by the tradition of Peter Paul Rubens. In addition he made numerous altarpieces for Flemish churches, group portraits, and allegories. Boeyermans's work also shares a close affinity with his contemporary Gonzales Coques. He joined the guild of St. Luke in 1654, and was associated with the later foundation of the Antwerp Academy.

Works

• Antwerp, Nurse of Painters, Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Antwerp, 1665
• The Envoy, Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Antwerp
• Saint Charles Borromeo Nursing the Plague Victims, Museum of Fine Arts Ghent, 1669
• Portrait of the Family de Bie, Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Antwerp
• The Visit, Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Antwerp
• The Vision of Saint Mary Magdalene of Pazzi, Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Antwerp, 1669
• Christ Healing the Sick People Lying near the Pool of Bethesda, Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Antwerp, 1675

References

• Hans Vlieghe (1998). Flemish Art and Architecture, 1585-1700. Pelican history of art. New Haven: Yale University Press. ISBN 0-300-07038-1
• For paintings in Belgian collections, see: Flemish Art Collection