Joos van Cleve

Joos van Cleve was a leading painter active in Antwerp from his arrival there around 1511 until his death in 1540 or 1541. Within Dutch and Flemish Renaissance painting, he combines the traditional techniques of Early Netherlandish painting with influences of more contemporary Renaissance painting styles.

An active member and co-deacon of the Guild of Saint Luke of Antwerp, he is known mostly for his religious works and portraits, some of royalty. He ran a large workshop, with at least five pupils and other assistants, which produced paintings in a variety of styles over his career. As a skilled technician, his art shows sensitivity to color and a unique solidarity of figures. His style is highly eclectic: he was one of the first to introduce broad world landscapes in the backgrounds of his paintings, sometimes collaborating with Joachim Patinir, which would become a popular technique of sixteenth century northern Renaissance paintings. Some works reflect the popular style of Antwerp Mannerism, while others are variations on early Netherlandish masters of two or more generations before, or reflect recent Italian painting.

Four of his more important paintings have the monogram "JB", presumably for Joos van der Beke, rather inconspicuously placed. In three other works a self-portrait is placed among the minor figures. From the seventeenth to the nineteenth centuries, the name of Joos van Cleve as an artist was lost. Some of the paintings now attributed to Joos van Cleve were, at that time, known as the works of the "Master of the Death of the Virgin", after the triptych in the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum in Cologne. In 1894 it was discovered that the monogram on the back of the triptych was that of Joos van der Beke, the real name of Joos van Cleve. His oeuvre was reconstructed in the 1920s and 1930s by Ludwig von Baldass and Max Jakob Friedländer. Now over 300 works are generally attributed to him or his workshop, which vary considerably in both quality and style.

He was the father of Cornelis van Cleve (1520-1567) who also became a painter, and inherited the workshop. Cornelis became mentally ill during a residence in England and was therefore referred to as 'Sotte Cleef' (mad Cleef).

Joos van Cleve was born around 1485-90. The birthplace of Joos van Cleve is not precisely known. In various Antwerp legal documents he is referred to as 'Joos van der Beke alias van Cleve'. It is therefore likely that he came from the Lower Rhenish region or city named Kleve (in traditional English "Cleves"), from which his name is derived. It is assumed that he began his artistic training around 1505 in the workshop of Jan Joest, whom he assisted in the panel paintings of the wings for the high altar of the Nikolaikirche in Kalkar, Lower Rhine, Germany, from 1506 to 1509. These include one of his self-portraits. From this a birth date of about 1485 to 1490 is inferred.

Joos van Cleve is believed to have moved to Bruges between 1507 and 1511 since his painting style is similar to that of the painters of Bruges. Later he moved to Antwerp, and in 1511 became a free master in the Antwerp Guild of Saint Luke. He was co-deacon of the guild for several years around 1520, along with registering pupils there at various dates between 1516 and 1536. In 1528 he bought a house from his wife's parents. As there are no records of his being in Antwerp between 1529 and 1534, it is possible he spent some of this time in Italy or France at the court, or even London.

From surviving documents it is clear that he was alive in Antwerp on 10 November 1540 and dead by 4 February 1541.

Compositions were often copied, repeated or adapted; for example at least six versions of an Adoration of the Magi triptych composition by him and his workshop are known, though varying considerably in size, with the widths of the centre panel ranging from 56 to 93 cm. This probably reflected different intended sites for the paintings, from private house chapels to churches.

Numerous paintings contain heraldry, which often enables the customers to be identified, including eleven of the twenty-one altarpieces attributed to the workshop. In other works the identity of local saints gives clues. Antwerp was the centre of European trade in the period, and the Antwerp merchant class was highly cosmopolitan. Five paintings can be linked with Italy, especially Genoa, and others to Cologne (three altarpieces) and Danzig in Germany, and four to various Netherlandish cities. Others have the arms of his homeland Mark-Cleves, the territories of John III, Duke of Cleves, and the Holy Roman Empire, suggesting the duke or a close courtier. Three paintings delivered to King Francois I of France are recorded.

The great majority of his work is religious subjects or portraits, with the main exceptions being versions of the Suicide of Lucretia, and a Leonardo-esque half-length nude, the Mona Vanna in the National Gallery in Prague.

In January 2021 an episode the BBC Four series Britain's Lost Masterpieces, centred on the fine art collection of the Royal Pavilion in Brighton, uncovered a work of Joos van Cleve, a portrayal of Balthazar, previously attributed to Bernard van Orley. The painting had once been the left-hand door of a folding altarpiece triptych.

Text courtesy of Wikipedia, 2024