Petrus van Schendel (1806-1870) was a Dutch-Belgian

genre Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other fo ...

painter in the Romantic style who specialized in nighttime scenes, lit by lamps or candles. This led to him being known as "Monsieur Chandelle".

Biography

On the advice of a family friend, who was a retired army officer, his father sent him to study at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp. He studied there from 1822 to 1828 with the history painter

Mattheus Ignatius van Bree Mattheus Ignatius van Bree (Antwerp, 1773 – Antwerp, 1839) was a Belgian Painting, painter. He was one of the founders of the historical school of painting in Belgium and played an important role as a teacher in the development of 19th-century ...

, and received a gold medal for " Perspective" upon graduating. He made a name as a portrait painter and moved frequently, living in

Breda Breda ( , , , ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the southern part of the Netherlands, located in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Brabant. ...

(1828-1829), Amsterdam (1830-1832),

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam. It is in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, part of the North S ...

(1832-1838), and The Hague (1838-1845). He was a regular participant in the

Exhibition of Living Masters The Exhibition of Living Masters (Dutch: Tentoonstelling van Levende Meesters) was the name given to a series of exhibitions of contemporary art, held in various cities in the Netherlands, from 1808 to 1917. History Louis Bonaparte, the King of ...

and the various "Triennial Salons" of Antwerp, Brussels and

Ghent Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) 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 the Provinces of Belgium, province ...

. In 1834, he was named a member of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Amsterdam. In 1845, he settled permanently in Brussels. His studio there was divided into a well-lighted space where he actually painted, and a darkened space where his models posed. He won several medals at expositions in Paris and London during the late 1840s. Some of his works were bought by King Leopold I. He also published course books on perspective and facial expression. He painted Biblical scenes and landscapes, lit by the moon, as well as his genre works and traditional portraits. Many of his paintings were also done as

ink wash Ink wash painting ( zh, t=水墨畫, s=水墨画, p=shuǐmòhuà) is a type of Chinese ink brush painting which uses washes of black ink, such as that used in East Asian calligraphy, in different concentrations. It emerged during the Tang dynasty ...

drawings and made into woodcuts. In 1869, he created a few experimental paintings lit by electric

arc lamp An arc lamp or arc light is a lamp that produces light by an electric arc (also called a voltaic arc). The carbon arc light, which consists of an arc between carbon electrodes in air, invented by Humphry Davy in the first decade of the 1800s, ...

s. In addition to his art, he was interested in the mechanics of steam engines and, in 1841, patented a device for improving the blades on steamships. He also devised suggestions for improving the lateral stability of railroad cars and reclaiming the moorlands in De Kempen. He was married three times and had fifteen children; thirteen by his first wife, Elisabeth, who died in 1850.

Selected paintings

Petrus van Schendel Der Liebesbrief.jpg, ''The Love Letter'' Petrus van Schendel - Nachtelijke marine.jpg, ''Nocturnal Marine'' Petrus van Schendel Fish seller.JPG, ''Fish Seller, Evening Market'', 1843 Petrus van Schendel Lektüre bei Kerzenlicht.jpg, ''Reading by Candlelight'' Petrus van Schendel Market.jpg, ''

Night Market Night markets or night bazaars ( zh, 夜市) are street markets which operate at night and are generally dedicated to more leisurely strolling, shopping, and eating than more businesslike day markets. The culture of night markets originates from C ...

'' File:Petrus van Schendel Market by candlelight.jpg, ''Market by candlelight'', 1869 File:A Gingerbread Seller by Candlelight by Petrus Van Schendel.jpg, ''A Gingerbread Seller by Candlelight''

External links

WikiGallery: More paintings by Van Schendel
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schendel, Petrus Van 1806 births 1870 deaths 19th-century Dutch painters Dutch male painters People from Drimmelen Painters from North Brabant Dutch genre painters Dutch portrait painters 19th-century Dutch male artists

Biography

Selected paintings

See also

Further reading

External links