Pieter Thijs (1624 – Antwerp – 1677)

Portrait of Philips van de Werve and his wife Isabelle (Née Charles) seated with their children

signed lower right: Peeter. Thijs Fecit
inscribed on verso with the sitter's names (from right to left, as viewed from front): Philips/van den/Werve; Isabelle/francoise/Charles; Philips/fernandus/van den Werve; Jan franciscus/van den Werve
With the sitters’ coat-of-arms lower right: Van de Werve and Charles
oil on canvas
76 ¾ x 102 inches (195 x 259 cm.)

Provenance:
Probably by descent in the Charles family;
‘Charle’, by whose heirs sold, Antwerp, Brincken, 8 July 1784, lot 6, when presumably acquired;
Thence by descent until sold (‘The Property of a Noble Family’), Sotheby’s, London, 12 July 2001, lot 34;
Private collection;
sale, Sotheby’s, London, 7 July 2005, lot 10, where acquired by the present owner.

Literature:
F. P.[rims], 'Aloude portrettengalerie. Philips Van de Werve en Isabelle Charles,' in Zondagsvriend, no. 399, September 28, 1939, p. 1215, no. 399;
M. van Huffel, Het Monumentale Familieportret in de Zuidnederlandse Schilderkunst van de Zeventiende Eeuw, vol. 1, pp. 203-9, no. III, 13 (diss., U of Louvain, 1985);
Y. Schmitz & A. Bousse, Les van der Werve. 800 Ans d'Histoire, Brussels, 1988, p. 297, reproduced p. 298;
H. Vlieghe, Flemish Art & Architecture 1585-1700, Cambridge, 1998, p. 145, fig. 193.

In 1754, Descamps enthusiastically proclaimed Pieter Thijs to be “one of the greatest artists,” writing that “it is only justice to put him with the first of his nation.  He was a great designer; his compositions have much spirit; his color and his manner are vigorous [and] he treated his backgrounds in a masterly fashion, with porticoes or colonnades."¹ In contrast to his later recognition, Thijs’ early life was scarcely documented.  He was recorded in the Antwerp Guild of St Luke in 1644 and later became Deacon in 1661.  Thijs was also highly esteemed and patronized by the Archduke Leopold Wilhelm in Brussels and the Prince of Orange in The Hague, for whom he made various allegorical and mythological compositions.  Later in his career, Thijs focused on religious scenes for monasteries and churches in Brabant and East Flanders.  In the early 1660s, around the time that the present work was executed, Thijs began to incorporate a more theatrical decorum in his work to satisfy to the growing predilections of his aristocratic clientele.

This monumental family portrait includes many hallmarks of the mature Baroque style; the palatial setting, the complex composition, the emphatic expressions of the subjects, and the highly dramatic portrayal of the scene are among the most noteworthy.² The expressive spontaneity of the children and the lively gesture of the guard controlling the horse in the background reveal the strong influence of Van Dyck–an influence that was present throughout Thijs’ entire career.³ The older child stands beside his mother, holding a ripe apricot, while the younger boy is seated next to a cornucopia of fruit.  Fred Meijer has suggested that this sumptuous still life and the tropical parrot were painted by the Flemish still life painter Pieter Boel.⁴ The ostentatious portrayal of the subjects, in addition to the lavish setting and grandiose architecture, epitomizes their high social standing.

Isabelle Charles and Philips van de Werve both came from reputable, patrician families in Antwerp.  Isabelle was the daughter of Gaspard Charles, Lord of Nieuwenhove, and Marguerite Dansaert.  Her exact date of birth is unknown, but her baptism is documented on January 25, 1635 in Antwerp.  Philips had several relatives that were mayors of Antwerp, or served in the army of Alexander Farnese in the late sixteenth century.  He married Isabelle at Sint-Jacobskerk in Antwerp on November 28, 1655.  They are depicted here, with the two eldest of their ten children, Philippe-Ferdinand (1656-1686) and Jean-François (1657-1710).  The family members may be identified by the old inscriptions on the reverse of our canvas (which were probably inspired by the original lining) in addition to the coat of arms in the lower right corner of the scene.  The children appear to be about five and four years old respectively, establishing a date for the picture of 1660-1.