Cornelis Janssens (born Cornelis Janssens van Ceulen, ; 14 October 1593 – 5 August 1661) was an Anglo-Dutch painter of portraits. Born of Dutch or Flemish parents who fled to London from Antwerp to escape religious persecution, Cornelis Janssens van Ceulen probably trained in the northern
Netherlands
, Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
. Around 1618 he established himself as a portrait painter in London. His signed or monogrammed portraits number several hundred; he is the first English-born painter known to have made so many. He was active in
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, from at least 1618 to 1643, when he moved to
Middelburg in the Netherlands to escape the
English Civil War
The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...
. Between 1646 and 1652 he lived in
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
, before settling in
Utrecht
Utrecht ( ; ; ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city of the Netherlands, as well as the capital and the most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Utrecht (province), Utrecht. The ...
, where he died.
Janssens painted many portraits of emerging new English gentry. His early portraits were panel paintings with "fictive" oval frames. His works can be found in major collections in the UK and overseas as well as in private collections in stately homes in Britain.
He was an accomplished portrait painter, but lacked the flair of a master such as
Anthony van Dyck
Sir Anthony van Dyck (; ; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Flemish Baroque painting, Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Spanish Netherlands and Italy.
The seventh child of ...
. His style varied considerably over his career, and he was able to assimilate new influences into his own style without any discordant effect. He was particularly accurate and detailed in his depiction of clothing. He was one of the few artists in England at this time who consistently signed and dated their work.
Family life
Janssens was born to Dutch or Flemish parents in London – his father had been a religious refugee from
Antwerp
Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...
,
and his paternal grandfather had come from
Cologne
Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...
. He was baptised at the
Dutch Church at
Austin Friars much used by the Netherlandish community in London. He was the son of Johanna le Grand and Cornelis Janssens. He may have been trained in the Netherlands, possibly under
Michiel Jansz. van Mierevelt.
[ p. 12] He was certainly influenced by other artists from the Netherlands, and his early works follow the design and mood of Dutch painters.
He had returned to
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
by 1618 when he was a witness at the baptism of his nephew, Theodore Russell – Johnson' sister was married to Nicholas Russell of
Bruges
Bruges ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders, in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is in the northwest of the country, and is the sixth most populous city in the country.
The area of the whole city amoun ...
. He was active in England, from then until 1643. In the 1620s, he lived and had his studio in
Blackfriars, London, as did
Anthony van Dyck
Sir Anthony van Dyck (; ; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Flemish Baroque painting, Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Spanish Netherlands and Italy.
The seventh child of ...
and
Peter Oliver; it was within the boundaries of the
City of London
The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...
, but was a
liberty
Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views. The concept of liberty can vary depending on perspective and context. In the Constitutional ...
and so avoided the monopoly in the City of members of the
London painters' Guild.
[Kirby, Jo (1999) ''The Painter's Trade in the 17th Century'', National Portrait Gallery Technical Bulletin 20] He married Elizabeth Beke of
Colchester
Colchester ( ) is a city in northeastern Essex, England. It is the second-largest settlement in the county, with a population of 130,245 at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census. The demonym is ''Colcestrian''.
Colchester occupies the ...
on 16 July 1622 at the Dutch church in London.
[ Their son James (who presumably died young) was baptised on 30 September 1623 at St Anne's Church.][Lane Fine Art]
/ref> Another son Cornelis Janssens, junior who also became a painter, was baptised on 15 August 1634.
Janssens wished to be regarded as an English gentleman, registering his pedigree with the College of Arms
The College of Arms, or Heralds' College, is a royal corporation consisting of professional Officer of Arms, officers of arms, with jurisdiction over England, Wales, Northern Ireland and some Commonwealth realms. The heralds are appointed by the ...
. His arms were three gold parrots on a gold background, and had a crest of a silver Catherine wheel with two parrot wings behind it. Apparently winged crests are common in German heraldry which may show the arms previously used by the family.
Janssens moved to Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...
in the mid-1630s, living with Sir Arnold Braems, a Flemish merchant, and continued to live in England until after the outbreak of the English Civil War
The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...
, but in October 1643, apparently at the insistence of his wife, he moved to Middelburg, joining the Guild of Saint Luke there. He was given parliamentary permission to travel " ... and to cary with him such pictures and colours, bedding, household stuff, pewter, and brass as belongs to himself". Between 1646 and 1652 he lived in Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
, before settling in Utrecht
Utrecht ( ; ; ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city of the Netherlands, as well as the capital and the most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Utrecht (province), Utrecht. The ...
, where he was buried.[Waterhouse, 61–2]
Portraiture
Janssens' first dated work is from 1617, and may be of a Dutch subject; 1619 marks the beginning of his English portraits, which were initially heads only, although he later painted full-length and group portraits.[Waterhouse, 62]
For painting a portrait, Janssens liked to charge £5 compared with a more typical figure of 10s – 20s. However, this was not as expensive as better known artists such as van Dyck or Peter Lely
Sir Peter Lely (14 September 1618 – 30 November 1680) was a painter of Dutch origin whose career was nearly all spent in England, where he became the dominant portrait painter to the court. He became a naturalised British subject and was kn ...
. Karen Hearn's ODNB
The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
entry for Janssens notes that "in 1638 Sir Thomas Pelham of Halland House, Sussex, paid £4 for his portrait by Janssens" (referencing an account book among the Pelham family papers, BL, Add. MS 33145, fol. 107).
There are hundreds of portraits of the emerging new gentry by Janssens, including Lady Rose MacDonnell of Antrim. "Janssens’ art was best suited to the relative intimacy of the bust length portrait in which, with a certain detachment, he captured the reticence of the English landed gentry and minor aristocracy". One of his earliest surviving portraits is of Susanna Temple, grandmother of Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough ( Tate). This portrait was subsequently engraved by Robert White towards the end of the seventeenth century. A copy of the engraving was among the prints owned by Samuel Pepys
Samuel Pepys ( ; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English writer and Tories (British political party), Tory politician. He served as an official in the Navy Board and Member of Parliament (England), Member of Parliament, but is most r ...
which subsequently passed to Magdalene College, Cambridge.
His royal portraits include Charles I as well as Charles II and James II, painted as children, both of which are in the National Portrait Gallery, London
The National Portrait Gallery (NPG) is an art gallery in London that houses a collection of portraits of historically important and famous British people. When it opened in 1856, it was arguably the first national public gallery in the world th ...
. He collaborated with Gerard Houckgeest on a portrait of Charles I's wife, Queen Henrietta Maria
Henrietta Maria of France (French language, French: ''Henriette Marie''; 25 November 1609 – 10 September 1669) was List of English royal consorts, Queen of England, List of Scottish royal consorts, Scotland and Ireland from her marriage to K ...
.
After his move to the Netherlands, he continued to produce portraits of English clients – both exiled Royalists, and clients still living in England.
Studio
Janssens’ studio in the 1620s was in St Anne's, Blackfriars, London. The size of Janssens’ studio is not known, but surviving portraits such as the portrait erroneously inscribed Countess of Arundel and that of Sir Alexander Temple (both below) help reconstruct the painting process. It is likely that Janssens did not paint the complete portraits himself. The wet-over-dry paint layering of the costumes (see 'Technique' below) and the fictive ovals allowed contributions from others in the studio, as did the demand for additional versions.
Patronage
His patrons came from the gentry, but were not from the highest levels in society.[ His sitters were Dutch immigrants, gentlemen and courtiers.] During the first few years of his career, a network of patronage by five families enabled Janssens to establish his reputation as a painter on the national stage. These families were the Boothby family of London and Chingford, the Corbett family of Shropshire, the Leveson family of Shropshire and Staffordshire, the Temple family of Burton Dassett and Stowe, and the Lenthall family of Burford and Besselsleigh. These families were connected to each other by marriage.
The identity of many of his sitters has been lost.[ Despite having only received a few commissions from the crown, in 1632, Janssens was appointed as "his Majesty's servant in the quality of Picture drawer" by Charles I. This appointment was perhaps in connection with the arrival of van Dyck and the departure from England of ]Daniel Mytens
Daniel commonly refers to:
* Daniel (given name), a masculine given name and a surname
* List of people named Daniel
* List of people with surname Daniel
* Daniel (biblical figure)
* Book of Daniel, a biblical apocalypse, "an account of the activi ...
– Janssens may have been found a role as a back-up for van Dyck.
Style
He has been described as "one of the most gifted and prolific portrait painters practising in England during the 1620s and 1630s". Lionel Cust describes him as being "more accomplished" than Gheeraerts. However, he has also been described as "a good painter, but unable to compete with the flair and superlative skills of van Dyck".[ Compared with van Dyck, Janssens’ portraits were "lower key but exquisite".]
He was one of the few artists in England at this time who consistently signed and dated their work, except for his later full-lengths, which his clients may have hoped would be mistaken for more expensive van Dycks. He may have been successful in this, as some full-length portraits attributed to van Dyck's workshop may well be by him. In the early years, his standard way of signing portraits was the phrase "fecit C J", although the 1619 portrait entitled ''the Countess of Arundel'' (below) is signed Cornelius Johnson fecit and many later works also have a full signature.
Janssens’ early portraits were panel paintings with "fictive" oval frames – they appear to have a wooden or marble oval surround, but this is actually painted on to the panel. This '' trompe-l'œil'' effect was one of Janssens' favourite devices in the early part of his career. "His figures are usually placed in front of dark, undefined backgrounds with focus on their faces and elaborate costumes that denote their social standing." He also painted some portrait miniature
A portrait miniature is a miniature portrait painting from Renaissance art, usually executed in gouache, Watercolor painting, watercolor, or Vitreous enamel, enamel. Portrait miniatures developed out of the techniques of the miniatures in illumin ...
s on copper.
His early works (for example the 1620 portrait of Sir Alexander Temple) were described by C. H. Collins Baker as "flat wooden and inanimate". Within a year, he has made "an astonishing advance" and his modelling becomes full and "his temper established". His earliest three-quarter length work is a pair of portraits of Thomas Boothby and his wife painted in 1619 and sold by the Weiss Gallery in 1988. Another three-quarter length portrait (of Lord Keeper Coventry) is dated 1623, and shows a certain lack of skill in dealing with the body, which is overcome in later works.
In his portraits, the sitters head is often unexpectedly low. The eyes have enlarged, rounded irises and deep curved upper lids.
The London Painters and Stainers company has a 1623/4 portrait of Clement Pargeter, William Peacock and Thomas Babb that may be by Janssens. If so, it is the earliest group portrait by him.
His style was conservative[ although it varied considerably over his career, and he was able to assimilate new influences into his own style without any discordant effect. He took from, in turn, Mytens, van Dyck, and William Dobson. His last Dutch portraits show a different style reflecting contemporary portraiture there.] However he also influenced other artists – both lesser lights as well as more accomplished artists such as van Dyck. Following the Netherlandish tradition, he was particularly accurate and detailed in depiction of clothing.[ As a result, his portraits are especially useful to costume historians.
]
Technique
Janssens uses a number of techniques that taken together uniquely identify his studio during his early career. These include the presence of both wet-in-wet and discreet layering; calculated variations in brushwork and the use of high quality (and expensive) pigments that survived aging well.
He "was masterful in bringing the unique characteristics of his pigments to the most dazzling effect. Janssens’ use of azurite blue is a primary example of how he utilized the character of each pigment to yield distinctive textures and eye-catching details."
Janssens was consulted by Théodore de Mayerne on handling orpiment
Orpiment, also known as ″yellow arsenic blende″ is a deep-colored, orange-yellow arsenic sulfide mineral with formula . It is found in volcanic fumaroles, low-temperature hydrothermal veins, and hot springs and may be formed through sublimatio ...
(a poisonous yellow pigment) and painted his portrait. In addition to describing his usage of orpiment to de Mayerne, Janssens also told Daniel King his technique for draperies. For linen draperies he used "white and oker broken with bone black". For blue draperies, he first laid in "all the background folds and shadows ... neatly and perfectly finished" with "indico ground in drying oiland mixt w h smalt and white". When this had dried, he painted over it a glaze of ultramarine and "fair white".
Exhibitions, sales and ownership of his work in important collections
From the second half of the seventeenth century onwards, there were frequent art auctions in London and later in provincial cities. Johnson's work was regularly sold at these auctions – for example lot 150 at a sale of paintings at Exeter Exchange in the Strand, 3 April 1690.
Karen Hearn, Honorary Professor at University College London
University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...
, curated a display of Johnson's work which was held at the National Portrait Gallery, London
The National Portrait Gallery (NPG) is an art gallery in London that houses a collection of portraits of historically important and famous British people. When it opened in 1856, it was arguably the first national public gallery in the world th ...
from April to September 2015. In July, 2016, the first large scale exhibition devoted solely to his work was held at the Weiss Gallery in London.
His work can be found in the National Gallery, the Tate Gallery, the National Portrait Gallery, Royal Collection
The Royal Collection of the British royal family is the largest private art collection in the world.
Spread among 13 occupied and historic List of British royal residences, royal residences in the United Kingdom, the collection is owned by King ...
, the Scottish National Portrait Gallery, the Dulwich Picture Gallery, many UK provincial galleries and in private collections in stately homes in Britain. Outside the UK, his work can be found in the Huntington Library Art Collections and Botanical Gardens, the Museum Catharijneconvent in Utrecht, the Yale Center for British Art. and Leufsta Manor, Swede
His
Portrait of a Lady
' was part of th
exhibition of Tudor and Stuart Fashion
at the Queen's Gallery.
Johnson's name is attached to the Johnson portrait of William Shakespeare in the Folger Shakespeare Library
The Folger Shakespeare Library is an independent research library on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., United States. It has the world's largest collection of the printed works of William Shakespeare, and is a primary repository for rare materia ...
. This was painted around 1610 and has a long association with Shakespeare. It was altered to show a higher forehead. It is no longer believed to be by Johnson.
Name
The large number of variants of his name has led to some controversy over the correct form. Johnson himself must take some responsibility for this since he frequently changed his signature. Hearn has argued that in his later years in the Netherlands, he added the words "van Ceulen" ("from Cologne") to his signature as a marketing technique to emphasize his foreign origins. He had previously added "Londines" (London) to his signature, but stopped using this form following the outbreak of the First Anglo-Dutch War
The First Anglo-Dutch War, or First Dutch War, was a naval conflict between the Commonwealth of England and the Dutch Republic. Largely caused by disputes over trade, it began with English attacks on Dutch merchant shipping, but expanded to vast ...
in 1652.
Finberg says "I think I may take this opportunity to protest once again against the prevalent habit of calling this artist Janssens. In spite of Walpole's unfortunate remark that this is the correct form of the name, there is no excuse for using it. While in England the artist invariably spelt his name Cornelius Johnson, and when he left England he changed the form to Jonson. The usual form of his signature when the name is given in full is invariably, in all the pictures painted after 1643 which I have seen : ' Cornelius Jonson van Ceulen.' He appears never to have adopted the form of Janson, Jansen, or Janssens. But so long as auctioneers are born with an ingrained conviction that a foreign-looking name gives greater value to a picture than an English name, so long may we expect to find Cornelius Johnson or Jonson masquerading in catalogues as Cornelius Janssens."[Alexander J Finberg, ''A CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF PORTRAITS BY CORNELIUS JOHNSON, OR JONSON'' (Walpole Society, Volume 10, 1922)]
Some portraits
File:Cornelius Johnson - Portrait of a Woman, Traditionally Identified as the Countess of Arundel - Google Art Project.jpg, Inscribed Countess of Arundel by Cornelius Johnson, 1619 at th
Yale Center for British Art
File:Cornelius Johnson - Sir Alexander Temple - Google Art Project.jpg, Erroneously inscribed Ld Gust Hamilton, but known to be Sir Alexander Temple, 1620 at th
Yale Center for British Art
File:Johnson Unknown Woman 1630.jpg, Unknown Woman (Elena Lee, Lady Sussex), 1630
File:Cornelius Johnson Queen Henrietta Maria.jpg, Queen Henrietta Maria (before 1639)
File:Johnson, Cornelius the elder - Portrait of a Lady in Blue - Google Art Project.jpg, Portrait of a Lady in Blue, c. 1639
File:Sir William Waller by Cornelius Johnson.jpg, Sir William Waller, 1643
File:Thomas Cletcher (1598-1666), burgemeester van Den Haag.jpg, Thomas Cletcher, jeweller and mayor of The Hague, 1643
File:De Haagse magistraten, 1647, door Cornelis Jonson van Ceulen (I).jpg, The Hague Magistrates, 1647, at the Old City Hall
File:Portrait of Two Young Girls on a Terrace with Two Hounds by Cornelius Johnson.jpg, Two Young Girls on a Terrace with Two Hounds, 1648
File:Cornelius Johnson - William III, Prince of Orange, as a child - Google Art Project.jpg, William III, Prince of Orange, as a child, 1657 at th
Yale Center for British Art
Notes
References
Sources
* Finberg, AJ, (1918). ''Two Anonymous Portraits by Cornelius Johnson'' Walpole Society
* Finberg, Alexande Joseph, (1922). ''A Chronological List of Portraits by Cornelius Johnson, Or Jonson'', Walpole Society
* Hearn, Karen, (2003). "The English Career of Cornelius Johnson" in Roding, Juliette ''Dutch and Flemish Artists in Britain 1550–1800'', Primavera Pers
*
*
*
Further reading
* Ellis Waterhouse, "Painting in Britain, 1530–1790", 4th ed., 1978, Penguin Books (now Yale History of Art series)
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Janssens Van Ceulen, Cornelis
1593 births
1661 deaths
Dutch Golden Age painters
Dutch male painters
British Baroque painters
17th-century English painters
17th-century Dutch painters
English portrait painters
English people of Dutch descent
English people of Flemish descent
Emigrants from the Kingdom of England
Immigrants to the Dutch Republic