Grew up in Antwerp and was trained by Rubens. Visited London in 1620 for a few months to do a history painting for George Villiers and a portrait for the Earl of Arundel. He then worked in many of the leading courts of Europe and in 1632, at the invitation of Charles I returned to England where he spent less than 10 years with over a year's return to Antwerp in the middle. Here he was knighted, given a pension and installed in a house in Blackfriars with a jetty for the royal barge when the King visited his studio. Van Dyck was well dressed with courtly manners. His portraits flattered the sitters. He liked to paint the women in informal dress, flowing drapery and the arms sexily on display. A century after his death the fashion for loose shifts for women and plain satin suits for men was known as Vandyck dress. During his stay in London Charles fell out with Parliament and ruled supreme, giving the court a false impression of its power and resilience. Regicide and Civil War were soon to come. The period has been compared to England in the years before WWI, an innocent, golden period before the horror.
This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Sir Anthony Van Dyck
Commemorated ati
Other Subjects
John Edwards
abstract painter and sculptor, and teacher. Born in London and grew up in Hornsey. Head of painting and sculpture at St Martin's School of Art, London, in the 1980s. In the last decade of his life,...
Ford Madox Brown
Painter and designer. Born Calais - the family travelled frequently between France and England. Not formally a member of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood but he was friends with them and shared their...
Sir Roland Penrose
Surrealist artist, writer and exhibition organiser. Born at 44 Finchley Road. Brought the first Picasso painting for display in London, in the 1936 London International Surrealist Exhibition which...
Mary Lowndes
Artist, suffragette and founder of Artist Suffrage League in 1909. Born Dorset. Trained in stained-glass work. Lived and worked in Chelsea. The photo shows Lowndes in 1890.
John Constable
Painter. Born in East Bergholt, on the Essex/Suffolk border. From 1819 Constable spent much of his time in Hampstead and many of his finest paintings are of Hampstead landscapes. He died in Fitzrov...
Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in here to see them