Adriaen Souter

Depiction of the First Mission on Formosa (Taiwan), by Chinese Artist and Souter

1643

ERWIN BINDEWALD (1897-1950) Two men playing draughts, a girl with the red book standing behind them Signed and dated E. Bindewald d.j., 27 Oil on canvas, 140.5 x 90.5 cm In black and gilt gesso frame. Note: Bindewald was born in Charlottenburg. He moved to Berlin in 1914 where he studied till 1924 at the Berliner Kunst Akademie. Bindewald travelled in Europe, but mainly stayed in Germany and certainly never was in China. This painting was made in Europe, presumably in the China Town of Berlin. Bindewald received several commisions in Germany from factory owners who wanted their factories painted inside, usually with workers, as well as outside. In the present painting the sitter on the right seems to be a man with a Manchurian background, wearing the brown coat reserved for the highest aristocracy in China. In China the black sleeve-ends completely cover the hands, indicating that the high aristocracy does not have to do any manuel labour. This man clearly is not a factory worker but he possibly is the (co)- owner of the factory in the background and as such might need his hands to do at least some writing. The man on the left in the modern Western suit...

David Finsonius (Veere 1597- Bergen op Zoom 1646/1648) Portrait of a girl with a rose and a red coral necklace With traces of the artist’s signature and annotated AETATIS S.V. 2 1⁄2 Ao 1631 Oil on panel, H. 104.5 x 79.5 cm Provenance: Purchased by Jonkheer Helenus Marius Speelman (1857-1909), Kasteel de Wittenburg; thence by descent The work shows a strong resemblance to a portrait by Finsonius in the North Brabant Museum. This signed and dated "Girl with Basket and Cherries" (Inv. 15529), was painted just a year later, in 1632. Not only are the paintings remarkably similar in overall size and format, in painting style, and in the positioning of the girls in full length in their white lace dresses. They are also connected by the iconographic scheme of the respective coral necklaces, each with a gold memorial medal hanging from it. Although they are of course individuals, the faces are very similar in their depictions of features such as eyes, nose, and lips. This points to the same technique applied by the same painter. Finally, the handwriting is almost the same on the works by Finsonius known so far. About the painter, David Finson named 'Finsonius' (related to the better-known Louis Finson...

CHRISTOFFEL LUBIENIECKI (1659-1729) Pair of portraits of a gentleman and a lady, both in silk kimono, before a country house (circa 1680) Indistinctly signed “C.......” on a box under the man’s left hand Oil on canvas, 79.5 x 67 cm each Both sitters are portrayed wearing a silk “Japanese” coat. During the second half of the seventeenth the Japanese silk coat, an adapted Japanese kimono, became a real vogue in the Dutch elite. The exclusive Dutch trade contacts with Japan can explain the popularity of the kimono-style silk coats in the Netherlands. Everybody who could afford one, dressed in such a fashionable and comfortable coat and, like the present sitters, some proud owners had themselves portrayed in a “Japanese” coat often together with an oriental carpet to underline their standing and international connections. These portraits are the work of the Polish-born portraitist Christoffel Lubieniecki (also known as Lubienitski, Lubinitski or Lubiniecki) Lubieniecki was first trained in Hamburg under Julian Stuhr and after 1675 in Amsterdam under Adriaen Backer and Gerard de Lairesse. He specialized in landscapes, generally of an Italianate character, and in portraits. The loving execution of these contented burghers, enjoying the garden vistas of their country house, places him alongside Amsterdam portraitists such as Constantijn Netscher and Michiel van Musscher...

Study of a dog Oil on paper laid down on panel, 17.5 x 25.5 cm Provenance Private collection, the Netherlands Note: We are grateful to Mr Fred Meijer for his attribution to Ludolf de Jongh Ludolf de Jongh was the son of a shoemaker. When his father moved to Rotterdam, the young Ludolf decided to learn art rather than shoemaking and became a pupil of Cornelis Saftleven. Later he studied under Anthony Palamedes in Delft and still later with Jan van Bijlert in Utrecht. In 1635 he travelled to France with Francis Bacon. Seven years later, in 1642, he returned to the Netherlands when he heard that his mother had fallen ill. He set up a shop in Rotterdam, and his earliest signed paintings date from that year. According to Houbraken, his travels had caused him to speak French so fluently, that his parents had to learn French in order to speak with him. De Jongh’s work shows a strong influence from the Utrecht school of Caravaggio admirers, especially Jacob Duck...