Architectural Painters
A limited number of painters busied themselves in making faithful transcripts of the streets and the exterior appearance of the buildings. Jan van der Heyden (1637–1712) was perhaps the most successful in this direction, and his View of the Town Hall of Amsterdam in 1688 is an excellent example of his methods, while the Louvre also possesses three small panels by him. Jan Abrahamsz Beerstraten (1622–1666), the son of a cooper at Amsterdam, travelled to Italy and the Mediterranean, proof of which is afforded by his Old Town Gate at Genoa (No. 2310). The typical architectural painter is, however, Gerrit Berckheyde (1638–1698). Although he never went to Italy, his View of Trajan’s Column (No. 2324) is a welcome relief from the many versions he painted, with conspicuous success, of The Market-Place of Haarlem.
Hendrik van Steenwyck (1580–1648) almost invariably contented himself with reproducing the Interiors of Churches (Nos. 2582, 2583); but his Christ in the House of Martha and Mary (No. 2581) is an unusual subject with him, and must be his masterpiece. The Vestibule of a Palace (No. 2490), by Isaac van Nickelle (fl. 1660), is very good of its kind; but the Interior of a Guard-Room (No. 2453), by Aart van Maes, is a poor attempt at dramatic action.