Dutch Baroque Era Painter, 1610-1685
Painter, draughtsman and etcher. According to Houbraken's rather unreliable biography, he was a pupil concurrently with Adriaen Brouwer of Frans Hals in Haarlem. Hals influenced him very little, whereas Brouwer, who was described as 'known far and wide' as early as 1627, had a decisive influence on the evolution of Adriaen van Ostade's always idiosyncratic portrayal of peasant life. The first documentary mention of Adriaen van Ostade as a painter is in 1632 (Schnackenburg, 1970). Most of his paintings are signed and dated, the earliest firmly dated example being the Peasants Playing Cards Related Paintings of Adriaen van ostade :. | Peasant at a Window | The Drinker | Interior with Peasants | fiskmanglaren | An alchemist | Related Artists:
Benjamin Robert HaydonEnglish Romantic Painter, 1786-1846
1786-1846.was an English historical painter and writer. Haydon was born at Plymouth. His mother was the daughter of the Rev. Benjamin Cobley, rector of Dodbrooke, near Kingsbridge, Devon. Her brother, General Sir Thomas Cobley, was renowned for his part in the siege of Ismail. Benjamin's father, a prosperous printer, stationer and publisher, was well known in Plymouth. Haydon, an only son, at an early date showed an aptitude for study, which was carefully fostered by his mother. At the age of six he was placed in Plymouth grammar school, and at twelve in Plympton St Mary School, the same school where Sir Joshua Reynolds had received most of his education. On the ceiling of the school-room was a sketch by Reynolds in burnt cork, which Haydon loved to sit and look at. Whilst at school he had some thought of adopting the medical profession, but he was so shocked at the sight of an operation that he gave up the idea. Reading Albinus inspired him with a love for anatomy; but from childhood he had wanted to become a painter. Full of energy and hope, he left home, on 14 May 1804, for London, and entered the Royal Academy as a student. He was so enthusiastic that Henry Fuseli asked when he ever found time to eat. Aged twenty-one (1807) Haydon exhibited, for the first time, at the Royal Academy, The Repose in Egypt, which was bought by Thomas Hope the year after for the Egyptian Room at his townhouse in Duchess Street. This was a good start for the young artist, who shortly received a commission from Lord Mulgrave and an introduction to Sir George Beaumont. In 1809 he finished his well-known picture of Dentatus, which, though it increased his fame, resulted in a lifelong quarrel with the Royal Academy, whose committee had hung it in a small side-room instead of the great hall. That same year, he took on his first pupil, Charles Lock Eastlake, later destined to become one of the great figures of the British art establishment. In 1810 his financial difficulties began when the allowance of £200 a year from his father was stopped. His disappointment was embittered by the controversies in which he now became involved with Beaumont, for whom he had painted his picture of Macbeth, and Richard Payne Knight, who had denied the beauties as well as the money value of the Elgin Marbles.
pablo casalsCatalan cellist and composer. He studied at Barcelona from 1887 and made his d??but there in 1891. After further study in Madrid and Brussels his international career began in 1899, when he played Lalos Concerto under Lamoureux in Paris. In 1905 he formed a trio with Thibaud and Cortot, recording works by Schubert and Beethoven. As a soloist Casals was renowned for his beautiful tone and intellectual strength. His playing did much to bring Bach's suites into the repertory. He formed the Orquestra Pau Casals in Barcelona in 1919 but his activities were curtailed by the Spanish Civil War. In 1950 at Prades he returned to music-making and later directed festivals at Perpignan and Puerto Rico. His many pupils included Guilhermina Suggia, with whom he formed a liaison. Casals wrote instrumental works and many choral pieces of a simple, devotional nature.
Henry Lejeune (12 December 1819 - 5 October 1904) was an English painter of landscapes, genre, literary and biblical scenes. He became well-known for his genre paintings of children.
Henry Le Jeune was born in London, the son of Anthony Le Jeune, a professional musician of Flemish origin, and the third of five children. After showing an early interest in art he was encouraged by his family to study the art collections in the British Museum.
In 1834 Le Jeune was admitted to the Royal Academy where, after winning 4 silver medals in succession, he won a gold medal in 1841 for the biblical painting "Samson Bursting his Bonds". He first exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1840 with a work entitled "Joseph Interpreting the Dream of Pharaoh's Chief Butler".
From 1845-48 he taught at the Government School of design at Somerset House, and from 1848-64 was curator and instructor at the Royal Academy. He was elected an Associate of the Royal Academy (ARA) in 1863 and an honorary retired associate in 1886.
Le Jeune married Dorothy Lewis (1815-1864) on 21 June 1844 and had five sons and three daughters. He lived in London all his life, dying in Hampstead in 1904.