The Construction Of The Tower Of Babel. Willem II Van Nieulandt (1584-1635/36) And Workshop.

Flanders early 17th century Oil on parquet oak panel Beautiful old period frame, black moldings and gilded foliage decoration (small gaps) original condition not resized. Total dimensions: 65 x 82 cm. The panel alone: 47 x 64 cm. Mythical subject, the construction of Babel inspired a large number of painters from the 16th century and among the best known: Pieter Breughel the Elder, Hendrick III Van Cleef, Lucas van Valckenborch, Joos de Momper, Tobias Verhaecht etc. The layout is almost the same with all the painters, the tower is in the center of the composition, on the right and on the left the landscape stretches into the distance and in the foreground the characters are always painted at the lower limit of the painting. . The myth of the Tower of Babel, a biblical reflection on human vanity, is based on historical facts. This story of the genesis of the old testament testifies to the pride of the Babylonians who, in wanting to reach the heavens, sowed chaos on the earth. To punish men, God created languages that prevented men from communicating with each other and scattered the descendants of Noah across the globe. There is no longer any doubt that the Tower of Babel truly existed in the ancient city of Babylon in Mesopotamia. Numerous excavations carried out in the area have revealed evidence of its existence and its slow destruction. Guilliam van Nieuwelandt was born in Antwerp in 1584 and died in Amsterdam in 1635, at the same time painter, engraver, poet and playwright of plays with biblical and historical themes, he lived and worked in the southern and northern Netherlands. Member of a family of artists, whose first known representative is a certain Jacob van Nijeulandt, registered as a bourgeois of Antwerp in 1561. One of his four children, Willem van Nieulandt (1533-1596), married Adriana Nouts (died 1608), with whom he had three sons: Willem the Elder (1560-1626), Joris (1561-1626) and Adriaen (died 1603). Willem the Elder was the first painter in the family. He lived and worked as a painter and draftsman in Rome, where he was known by the Italianized name Guglielmo Terranova. He became a member of the Accademia di San Luca in that city in 1604. His brother Adriaen was an itinerant feather merchant who settled with his family in Amsterdam in 1589, probably because of his Calvinist beliefs. Adriaen's sons – Guilliam the Younger (or II), Adriaen the Younger and Jacob – all became painters. After the capture of Antwerp by Alexander Farnese, his family moved to Amsterdam around 1589 According to Houbraken (Dutch biographer), Guilliam the Younger learned the profession of painter in the studio of Jacob Savery and later with Roeland Savery . Subsequently, he left for Rome to perfect his knowledge. Good state of conservation. Sold with invoice & certificate

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