Matthijs Bril - Landscape with Figures - Oil on Canvas - 1570

Landscape with Figures is an original Old Master Painting realized in the Second half of the 16th Century and attributed to the French painter Matthijs Bril (Antwerp, 1550 – Rome, 1583). Original Oil on Canvas. Ancient Wooden Gilded Frame is included. Dimensions: 112 x 125 cm. Mint conditions. Landscape with Figures is an original Old Master Painting realized in the Second half of the 16th Century and attributed to the French painter Matthijs Bril (Antwerp, 1550 – Rome, 1583). Matthijs Bril was a Flemish painter and draughtsman of landscapes. He spent most of his active career in Rome were his drawings of ancient Roman sites played an important role in the development of topographical landscape art. He was also a painter of capricci (architectural fantasies), with typical rustic hills with a few ruins. Matthijs Bril's work is now mainly known through his frescoes and drawings. Matthijs was specialized in landscapes. He painted two types of landscapes: landscapes with a topographical interest and imaginary landscapes.Matthijs contributed to the genre of topographical painting in combining close attention to detail with a perspective that highlights the monumentality of the depicted buildings. The latter was achieved by using a lowered viewpoint and dynamic recession into the distance of the depicted object. Matthijs contributed to the genre of topographical painting in combining close attention to detail with a perspective that highlights the monumentality of the depicted buildings. The latter was achieved by using a lowered viewpoint and dynamic recession into the distance of the depicted object. His imaginary landscapes without a topographical interest are more typically Mannerist in their close observation of nature and dramatic contrasts of light and dark. Their palette is dominated by acid blues and greens and the brushwork is impressionistic. These imaginary landscapes were used by his brother Paul and others as an inspiration for their work. These paintings are now known through a series of prints made by the Dutch engraver Simon Frisius. They were published in 1611 and 1613–14 in two volumes under the title Topographia Variarum Regionum. The work Landscape with Figures is an excellent oil painting on canvas. It is typical of the Flemish painting in Rome during the Second half of the 16th Century. Still rare during the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries due to its danger and costliness, the practice of a training voyage in Italy for foreign artists became systematic in the mid-sixteenth century. This voyage had two major aims: copying from Antiquity, as well as the confrontation and emulation prompted by observing the works of Italian Renaissance masters. Already acquainted with the artistic vocabulary of the Italian Renaissance through the circulation of engravings, and also by the presence of Italian works in Flemish territory, an additional step was taken when Northern artists decided to set out to encounter a culture that was geographically removed from their artistic centres, in an effort to grasp a new way of painting. Some artists, such as the brothers Matthijs and Paul Bril, Jan van der Straet (whose Italianized name was Giovanni Stradano), and Pauwels Franck (called Paolo Fiammingo in Italy) chose to stay and lead their careers in Rome, Florence, and Venice respectively. This artwork is shipped from Italy. Under existing legislation, any artwork in Italy created over 70 years ago by an artist who has died requires a licence for export regardless of the work’s market price. The shipping may require additional handling days to require the licence according to the final destination of the artwork.