Portrait of Berthilde van Abbe in communion dress

Ships from The Netherlands


Premier Seller
Description
Jan Sluijters’ work is considered to be of great importance to Dutch art history. He played a pioneering role in the young avant-garde, which also included artists such as Piet Mondriaan and Leo Gestel. From his time at the academy until shortly after the First World War, Sluijters experimented frequently and adopted styles such as luminism, fauvism, cubism and expressionism. After this he gained fame as a painter of portraits, nudes, flower still lifes and domestic scenes in a moderate expressionist style.


As befits a modern artist at the beginning of the twentieth century, Sluijters made a trip with Leo Gestel in January 1904 to Belgium and France, where they visited various museums. In that year, Sluijters won the prestigious Prix de Rome with a large academic painting. Shortly afterwards, when he became acquainted with French avant-garde art, his painting style developed into a modern style. Despite the fact that Sluijters surrendered to modern shapes and colours, he always maintained a penchant for realism: the visible reality always remained the starting point for his work.



Jan Sluijters can without doubt be called one of the most important artists of modernism in the Netherlands. Together with Jan Toorop (1858-1928) he was a board member of the Moderne Kunstkring, which was founded in 1910 by Conrad Kickert (1882-1965) as a protest against the resistance that many progressive artists encountered to have their work placed in exhibitions. Piet Mondriaan (1872-1944) was also a member of the board. Like Kees van Dongen (1877-1968) among others, Sluijters was strongly influenced by the use of color in French fauves. Sluijters’ work was all about colour; his colorite was his ultimate trademark.



From the 1920s, the number of portrait commissions that Sluijters received grew. In 1941 Sluijters made a visual statement about his work as a portrait painter: ‘Of course I always try to paint the essence of a person, the appearance comes after that. For example, I see someone in shades of gray or in a certain blue. If I have the wrong shade, I discover it with the same feeling of physical disgust as if I heard cheating on a piano or scratching zinc with a nail.”



Berthilde van Abbe is one of the three children of Albert van Abbe, the youngest son Henri van Abbe (1880-1940). Henri Jacob van Abbe was a Dutch tobacco industrialist and art collector. He is the founder of the Van Abbemuseum in Eindhoven, established in 1936. Henri van Abbe, who loved modern art wanted to enjoy it in Eindhoven. Van Abbe knew all the painters from whom he collected work personally. Jan Sluijters was a family friend. Sluijters portrayed many family members of the Van Abbe family.
Origin and period
private collection A.J.A. van Abbe, Eindhoven; Dutch private collection
Name
Portrait of Berthilde van Abbe in communion dress
Categories
Fine Art Paintings
Origins
The Netherlands
Materials
Oil on canvas
Measurements
Height: 80 cm, Width: 60 cm
Reference
DAAA100606
Premier Seller
Founded in 1978
Artlistings seller since 2015

Ask the seller

More from this seller

    Portrait of a Pierrot (presumably Buziau)

    Portrait of a Pierrot (presumably Buziau)

    Floris Arntzenius

    Walk of Life

    Walk of Life

    R.A.A.J. (Robert Archibalt Antonius Joan) Graafland

    Touareg with a Dromadery

    Touareg with a Dromadery

    Piet van der Hem

    Potato Harvest

    Potato Harvest

    Jan Zoetelief Tromp

    Young lady at the beach of Viareggio

    Young lady at the beach of Viareggio

    Isaac Israëls

    Jacob Elias La Fargue (1735–1778)

    Jacob Elias La Fargue (1735–1778)

    Jacob Elias La Fargue

    View of the Noordermarkt

    View of the Noordermarkt

    Isaac Israëls

    Horseman on the beach of Viareggio

    Horseman on the beach of Viareggio

    Isaac Israëls

    A cart pusher on the Prinsengracht

    A cart pusher on the Prinsengracht

    Isaac Israëls

    Elegant lady with blue hat

    Elegant lady with blue hat

    Isaac Israëls

    Paddling

    Paddling

    Isaac Israëls

You may also like

    Jan Siberechts (1627-1703)

    Jan Siberechts (1627-1703)

    Claude Bertin (?-1705)

    Claude Bertin (?-1705)

    Jean Grandjean (1752-1781)

    Jean Grandjean (1752-1781)

    Lady in white dress with dog

    Lady in white dress with dog

    Fernand TOUSSAINT

    Still-Life of Roses

    Still-Life of Roses

    Fernand TOUSSAINT

    Jacob Toorenvliet

    Jacob Toorenvliet

    Jacob Toorenvliet

    Portrait of Hedwig Nijhoff-Selldorff

    Portrait of Hedwig Nijhoff-Selldorff

    Wilhelm List

    Jan, Rob en Liesje Sluijters

    Jan, Rob en Liesje Sluijters

    Jan Sluijters

    Portrait of a Pierrot (presumably Buziau)

    Portrait of a Pierrot (presumably Buziau)

    Floris Arntzenius

    A Portrait of a Young Girl

    A Portrait of a Young Girl

    Pieter Hermansz. Verelst

    Flower still life with roses

    Flower still life with roses

    Gerardina Jacoba van de Sande Bakhuyzen

    Ladies at the beach

    Ladies at the beach

    Still life with flowers and fruit

    Still life with flowers and fruit

    Johannes Carolus Bernardus 'Jan' Sluijters

    Reclining Nude

    Reclining Nude

    Johannes Carolus Bernardus 'Jan' Sluijters