Lauren Ridealgh (63 works)
Brouwer Adrian (1605 or 1606, Oudenaarde, - buried 1.2.1638, Antwerp), Flemish painter. A native of Flanders, he moved to Holland around 1621 and worked mainly in Haarlem (where around 1623-24 he entered the workshop of F. Hals) and Amsterdam. In 1631 he settled in Antwerp. One of the greatest masters of the Flemish everyday genre, B. turned to the life of peasants and urban lower classes, writing mainly scenes of drinking parties and fights, smokers and gamblers in dim taverns. B.'s small-sized paintings are alien to idealization and smoothness; they depict people's life with its contradictory and sometimes gloomy sides; but along with darkness and rudeness, B. emphasized activity, integrity of nature, and fullness of vitality in ordinary people.
B.'s early paintings are acutely grotesque and are distinguished by expressive facial expressions and gestures. In mature works, the characteristics of the heroes are enriched, the dramatic action is combined with the lyricism of the mood, objects acquire rare plastic expressiveness, the dynamic composition - classical clarity, and the color - saturation and depth, and the sharp contrasts of color spots are softened by a finely nuanced airy haze ("Fight of peasants when playing cards", Art Gallery, Dresden; "Bitter Drink", Städel Art Institute, Frankfurt am Main). In the later paintings the composition is calmer and simpler, the humor is more intimate and good-natured, a lyrical and dreamy mood prevails (Sleeping Smoker, Louvre, Paris; self-portrait, Mauritshuis, The Hague). B. also painted rural landscapes, captivating with the intimate, sad poetry of evening silence and the dramatic effects of lighting (“Moonlight”, Art Gallery, Berlin-Dahlem).
Very little is known about the artist’s childhood and youth. Born into a family of artisans. His father was engaged in painting cardboard for carpets. Audenard carpets were valued throughout Europe. Since childhood, the future artist helped his father in the workshop, drawing fancy patterns for future carpets. It is assumed that in 1621 he left Belgium, and in 1626, documentary sources confirm Brouwer’s stay in Haarlem. In 1631-1632 the artist moved to Antwerp.
In 1628, while in Holland, Brouwer took lessons from Frans Hals; in 1630 he was accepted into the Antwerp Guild of St. Luke. Despite his Flemish origin, Brouwer was greatly influenced by Dutch painting and was far from the opulent Baroque Flemish school. Despite this, Brouwer’s paintings were greatly appreciated by Rubens, who purchased several paintings from him for his art collection and tried to provide his patronage to the “incorrigible reveler.” In 1633, Brouwer was arrested by the Spanish authorities. The exact reason for his arrest is not known, but he may have been arrested for his participation in the Ghent uprising of 1631. From 1634 until his death from the plague in January 1638, Brouwer lived with the Antwerp engraver Paulus Pontius.
Brouwer painted genre scenes from peasant life, peasant dances, card players, smokers, hawk moths and fights, which are distinguished by their liveliness and genius of design. However, during the artist's lifetime, his paintings were not in value, so he was in need, so his household property was recovered for the benefit of his creditors. Most of Brauwer's paintings are kept in the Munich Pinakothek, in St. Petersburg, Madrid, Dresden and Vienna (Liechtenstein Gallery).
Brouwer died at the age of 32 in Antwerp and was buried in a common grave. Later, with the assistance of members of the guild, he was reburied on February 1, 1638 on the territory of the Carmelite Church
Rubens himself collected his paintings (there were seventeen of them in his collection). Each of Brouwer's works is a pearl of painting. The artist was endowed with enormous color talent. He chose as the theme of his work the everyday life of the Flemish poor - peasants, beggars, vagabonds - tedious with its monotony and emptiness, with its wretched entertainment, sometimes disturbed by an outbreak of wild animal passions. Brouwer continued the traditions of Bosch and Bruegel in art with his active rejection of the squalor and ugliness of life, stupidity and animal baseness of human nature and at the same time a keen interest in what is uniquely characteristic. It does not aim to reveal to the viewer a broad background of social life. Its strength lies in its depiction of specific genre situations. He especially has the ability to express in facial expressions the various affects of feelings and sensations experienced by a person. In contrast to Rubens, van Dyck and even Jordanes, he does not think about any ideals or noble passions. He sarcastically observes a person as he is. In the museum you can see his painting “Drinking Buddies”, remarkable for its delicate light coloring, strikingly conveying the lighting and atmospheric state. The miserable cityscape near the ramparts, together with the vagabond players, evokes a heart-piercing melancholy in the soul. This mood of the artist himself, speaking about the dull hopelessness of existence, is certainly deeply dramatic.
