Items Similar to The Beautiful Maiden
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 10
Jan Van BeersThe Beautiful Maiden1875
1875
$14,527.47
£10,500
€12,517
CA$19,931.40
A$22,381.46
CHF 11,791.21
MX$277,032.66
NOK 145,983.78
SEK 138,982.83
DKK 93,373.68
Shipping
Retrieving quote...The 1stDibs Promise:
Authenticity Guarantee,
Money-Back Guarantee,
24-Hour Cancellation
About the Item
Jean Marie Constantin Joseph (Jan) VAN BEERS
Oil on Panel
Panel Size: 32 x 24" (81 x 62cm)
Outside frame Size: 38 x 33" (97 x 83cm)
Van Beers (1852 - 1927) studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp. Soon afterwards, he became the leader of a group of young artists, the "Van Beers clique." This group included the artists Piet Verhaert (1852–1908), Alexander Struys (1852–1941), and Jef Lambeaux (1852–1908). They were well known for their mischievous and eccentric behaviour, including walking around Antwerp dressed in historic costumes. These eccentricities aside, several art critics had been emphasizing the technical skills of Van Beers, comparing them to those of the Old Masters. In 1878 Van Beers moved to Paris, and he started to work in the studio of his fellow Belgian painter Alfred Stevens.
In Paris he immediately abandoned historical pictures, producing instead genre and portrait works of the middle classes and developing a successful line in attractive draped young ladies reading a letter or a book or day-dreaming about a lover. His subjects were painted in a highly-finished Naturalist style. He painted very small pictures, delicately brushed, hyper-realistic in their details and extreme finish. Success was almost immediate.
However, at the Brussels Salon of 1881, Van Beers found himself amid a scandal that would upset the Belgian art world and, at the same time, give him instant recognition. He exhibited two paintings at the Brussels Salon of that year, both painted in his new, miniature-like and hyperrealistic style. One of the works, The yacht 'Sirene,' was to become the subject of the turmoil. He was accused to have pushed his realistic style beyond the boundaries of the possible. The Belgian critics Solvay and De Mons suspected him to have painted over a photograph, calling his work a photo-peinture. While the Review L' Art Moderne defended him by suggesting that those were merely echoing comments of some artists who were jealous of Van Beers' commercial success, the scandal nonetheless raised considerable attention.
Van Beers decided to react promptly. He offered to have both his paintings scraped off and checked by experts . If they could discover even the most remote trace of the use of photography, Van Beers would pay them 10 000 francs for Lily, his second exhibition piece, and 20 000 francs for La Sirene, the prices he was asking for them. On the other hand, if they couldn't find anything, the critics were to pay this amount to the Caisse de recours (a pension fund) of the Brussels artists.
The critics refused the challenge, arguing that Van Beers just had to recognize his mistake. Then, on September 3, 1881, during the short absence of the guards at the Salon, an unknown person vandalized the Sirene by scratching off the face of the young woman. Immediately the painting attracted even more attention and crowds of visitors, who wanted to check by themselves if any trace of photography was visible. Van Beers took this opportunity to name a commission to examine the painting. It included the president of the Cercle Artistique et Littéraire of Brussels, the artists Charles Verlat and J.F. Portaels, and two specialists in photography and chemistry. After a thorough examination the commission's report cleared Van Beers of all charges and concluded that he was "an honest man." L'affaire Van Beers" gave him Europe-wide attention. Previously a largely unknown artist, Van Beers was able to use his newfound fame to sell his work for large sums.
Van Beers said that he wanted to paint what he saw and what were the best and most interesting things that one saw in Paris. He explained in an 1893 interview for the Westminster Budget that "all my pictures are from models, and I know where to find them whenever I want them. It requires a good deal of diplomacy to get them to pose. One has to pet and coax them, and even then they often leave you in the lurch."
Vanity Fair showed him with a typical subject in their 1891 caricature titled "The Modern Wiertz" (Antoine Wiertz, 1806–65).
Museum and Gallery Holdings
Amsterdam: Funeral of Charles the Good
Antwerp (Koninklijk Mus. voor Schone Kunsten): Peter Benoit, Director of the Flemish Conservatory in Antwerp (1883, oil on panel); The Painter’s Parents (oil on canvas); Lady in White (oil on panel); Fallen Star (1874, oil on canvas); Henri Rochefort (oil on panel); Jacob van Maerlant on His Deathbed (1879, oil on panel); Maerlant Presiding over the Liberation of Flanders from Breydel and Corninck; William of Jülich; Saeftingen; Emperor Karel as a Child (1879, oil on canvas, triptych)
Boston (MFA): Portrait of a Man (oil on panel)
Brighton (Mus. and AG): Lady of the Directoire (1889, oil on panel)
Brussels (Mus. Royaux des Beaux-Arts): Portrait of Sarah Bernhardt (1888, oil on panel)
Madrid: Peasant Woman from the Ambères Region Milking a Cow
Rouen: Parisian Woman
Washington DC (Nat. Portrait Gal.): Charles Tyson Yerkes (oil on panel)
- Creator:Jan Van Beers (1852 - 1927, Belgian)
- Creation Year:1875
- Dimensions:Height: 38 in (96.52 cm)Width: 33 in (83.82 cm)Depth: 3 in (7.62 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Condition:Oil on Panel. It has the artist's label on the reverse. it is in the original frame.
- Gallery Location:St. Albans, GB
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU2469212863602
Jan Van Beers
Jan van Beers is a Belgian artist and son of the poet, Jan van Beers. He studied at Aversa and then moved to Paris, where he worked for Alfred Stevens. He made a lot of illustrations for a lot of magazines, such as Revue illustrée.
About the Seller
5.0
Gold Seller
Premium sellers maintaining a 4.3+ rating and 24-hour response times
Established in 1965
1stDibs seller since 2023
34 sales on 1stDibs
Typical response time: 1 hour
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Shipping from: St. Albans, United Kingdom
- Return Policy
Authenticity Guarantee
In the unlikely event there’s an issue with an item’s authenticity, contact us within 1 year for a full refund. DetailsMoney-Back Guarantee
If your item is not as described, is damaged in transit, or does not arrive, contact us within 7 days for a full refund. Details24-Hour Cancellation
You have a 24-hour grace period in which to reconsider your purchase, with no questions asked.Vetted Professional Sellers
Our world-class sellers must adhere to strict standards for service and quality, maintaining the integrity of our listings.Price-Match Guarantee
If you find that a seller listed the same item for a lower price elsewhere, we’ll match it.Trusted Global Delivery
Our best-in-class carrier network provides specialized shipping options worldwide, including custom delivery.More From This Seller
View AllThe Rose Seller
Located in St. Albans, GB
Alfred Edward Emslie
A beautiful example of Arthur Emslie's work combining his renown ability for portraiture and genre. The soft tones of the background and dress contrasted with the highlights in the face and the large, vibrant bouquet of roses creates a piece perfect for any situation. It is a painting showing class, technique and subtlety.
Provenance: Bonhams
Canvas Size: 22 x 18" (56 x 46cm)
Outside Frame Size: 32 x 28" (81 x 71cm)
1848-1918
Alfred Edward Emslie was an English genre and portrait painter and photographer.
He was the son of the engraver, John Emslie...
Category
1890s Victorian Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil
'A Family Group with a Pet Dog'. Antique painting on canvas
Located in St. Albans, GB
William Richard Waters
Picture Size: 36 x 28" (92 x 72cm)
Outside Frame Size: 44 x 36" (112 x 92 cm)
Oil on Canvas signed bottom right and dated 1847
This painting is nearly 200 year...
Category
1840s Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
$6,862 Sale Price
20% Off
Free Shipping
Portrait of a Gentleman with his Dog - Possibly Abraham Tucker. Oil on Canvas
By Enoch Seeman
Located in St. Albans, GB
Enoch Seeman - 1894 - 1744
An excellent example of Seeman's work. It is typically unsigned as was the case of many portraits of that time. A three quarter length portrait showing a r...
Category
1730s Old Masters Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil
Portrait of a Lady possibly Frances Thynne, Lady Worsley 1673-1750 Oil on canvas
By Charles Jervas
Located in St. Albans, GB
Charles Jervas
Possibly Frances Thynne, Lady Worsley 1673-1750
Oil on Canvas
Picture Size: 50 x 40"
Outside Frame Size: 58 x 48"
1675 – 1739
Charles Jervas, who was born in Clonli...
Category
Early 1700s English School Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil
$42,060 Sale Price
20% Off
Free Shipping
'The Conversation Piece', oil on canvas by Tarkay
By Itzchak Tarkay
Located in St. Albans, GB
Itzchak Tarkay
Picture Size: 40 x 32(99 x 80cm)
Outside Frame Size: 49 x 41" (121 x 102cm)
Free Shipping
1935 - 2012
Born on the Yugoslav-Hungarian border in the city of Subotica ...
Category
Late 20th Century Post-Impressionist Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
$16,395 Sale Price
25% Off
Free Shipping
Before the ball. Antique oil on canvas by Charles Baxter
By Charles Baxter
Located in St. Albans, GB
A perfect example of Charles Baxter's work. Two beautiful ladies , one holding a flower, dressed in their best finery. Despite being unsigned, the paint...
Category
Late 19th Century Victorian Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
You May Also Like
Antique French Female Portrait oil painting 1800’s woman playing a mandolin
Located in AIGNAN, FR
Antique Portrait oil painting 1800’s French figurative original oil on canvas painting of a woman playing a mandolin or musical instrament female p...
Category
Late 19th Century French School Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil
Portrait of Colonel Charles-Louis-Prosper Marquis de Chérisey (1786-1837)
Located in Paris, IDF
After Louis-Stanislas MARIN-LAVIGNE (Paris, 1797 – Paris, 1860)
Portrait of Colonel Charles-Louis-Prosper Marquis de Chérisey (1786-1837)
in the uniform of commander of the 38th lin...
Category
Mid-19th Century French School Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil
The death of General Négrier on Place de la Bastille, Paris - France
By Nicolas Edward Gabé
Located in Paris, IDF
Nicolas Edward GABE
(Paris, 1814 - Paris, 1865)
The death of General Négrier on Place de la Bastille on June 25, 1848
Oil on canvas
Signed and dated lower right
82 x 101 cm
1849
Nicolas Edward Gabé is a 19th century artist who is still little studied to this day and yet seems to have enjoyed, according to the artistic press of the time, a certain notoriety, in particular for his seascapes.
The few bibliographical elements that we have come from the Salon booklets and tell us that the artist was born in Paris in 1814, therefore shortly before the end of the Empire.
No elements on his artistic training are mentioned in the booklets, we just know that Gabé exhibited at the Paris Salon from 1835 to 1864 where he first practiced miniature then then approached easel painting, risking himself as well in still life that the seascapes, the landscape, the portrait or the hunting.
According to press articles, he also took part in various exhibitions in the provinces such as Boulogne-sur-Mer and Marseille.
Notably, Gabé did not exhibit at the Salon his large historical canvases on the revolution of 1848, which today are of obvious documentary and iconographic interest; probably for political reasons which are easily understandable to us today in view of the historical events of then.
Gabé died in Paris at the age of 51 on January 4, 1865 with a mention in the January 7, 1865 edition of L'Union des Arts: “The death of Mr. Gabé, painter, well known in the export trade in paintings as well as to the auctioneers' hotel, whose sales it supplied through its numerous navies. “
"On June 25, 1848, in front of the barricades erected in the Bastille by the insurgents of the Red Republic, General Négrier fell to death, while he was uttering words of order and conciliation". Here are the opening lines of the tribute paid by Colonel Borgarelli d´Ison, friend of General Négrier.
General Négrier belonged to a family from Maine, brought back by Marshal Lannes from emigration. Born in Le Mans on April 27, 1788, François Marie Casimir de Négrier entered, barely 18, as a volunteer in the 2nd Light Infantry Regiment. He began in 1806 with the campaigns of Prussia and Poland, during which he earned, through his bravery, the rank of sergeant and the decoration of the Legion of Honor. He made the following campaigns in Spain and Portugal, and left, with his regiment, only for the campaign of France, in 1814, after having risen successively, by actions of brilliance and by a serious wound, to the ranks of head of battalion and officer of the Legion of Honor, with which he was provided from October 1813. The Restoration retained his rank in his regiment. After having fought and wounded a second time seriously in Waterloo, Négrier was recalled in 1816 under the second Restoration. He was appointed, in 1825, lieutenant-colonel, then colonel in 1830, brigadier general in 1836, and of division in 1841. From March 1837 he participated in the conquest of Algeria.
The Revolution of 1848 found Negrier in possession of the important command of the 16th Military Division in Lille. Quaestor of the Assembly in these times which promised to be troubled, Négrier reviewed the Place de la Concorde on June 23 at around noon various mobile guard battalions. He then took the head of 2,000 men provided by the 10th and 11th legions of the national guard and bivouacked on the Place du Palais until the next day 24. On Sunday 25 at nine o'clock, the Négrier division resumed the fight towards the Saint suburb. -Antoine. The troop gains continual advantages. At around two o'clock the column of Négrier had seized the Pont Marie: it had removed the barricades from the Quai Saint-Paul, the rue de l'Etoile, the rue des Barres...
Category
Mid-19th Century French School Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
Portrait of Madame Hermann-Joseph REINACH, born Julie BÜDING (1828-1870)
Located in Paris, IDF
Frédéric Adolphe YVON
(Eschviller, 1817 – Paris, 1893)
Portrait of Madame Hermann-Joseph REINACH,
born Julie BÜDING (1828-1870)
Oil on canvas
Signed and dated on the left
65 x 54 ...
Category
Late 19th Century French School Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil
Souvenir from Italy: Pifferaro playing the zampogna with the family
Located in Paris, IDF
Joseph BEAUME
(Marseille, 1796 – Paris, 1885)
Souvenir from Italy: pifferaro playing the zampogna with the family
Oil on canvas
Signed lower left
73.5 x 60 cm
Provenance: probably...
Category
Mid-19th Century French School Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
Blue macaw perched on a branch
By Jean-Baptiste Oudry
Located in Paris, IDF
French school of the second half of the 19th century,
follower of Oudry
Blue macaw perched on a branch
Oil on canvas
73 x 60 cm
Category
Late 19th Century French School Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil
More Ways To Browse
Beautiful Antique Painting
French Conservatory
Maiden French
Antique French Miniature Portrait
Antique Milk Paint
Antique Miniature Oil Paintings
Piet Paris
Antique Hand Painted Vanity
Miniature Portrait Of A Lady
Milk Cow
Large Triptych Photographs
My Fair Lady
Woman Reading Portrait Oil Painting
Vanity Fair Caricature
20 Francs
Sarah Bernhardt Painting
Cowes Yacht
J Class Yacht