The Allure of Rome: The Life & Art of Maarten van Heemskerck

Maarten van Heemskerck is not a name that pops up frequently in general histories of art, despite being arguably the greatest of the northern Netherlandish painters of the 16th century I first encountered him in the 1980s via his striking Self Portrait in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, seen above with its tantalising view of the Colosseum in the background. Based in and around Haarlem for most of his career, his life (1498 – 1574) was shaped by two momentous series of events: his sojourn in Rome (1532 – 1536); and his subsequent, highly successful career amidst the turmoil of the Reformation and the attempts by the northern provinces of the Netherlands to cast off the heavy yoke of Habsburg rule. Given much of his surviving work remains in either the ‘Low Countries’ or in European and American collections, it is not surprising that his work is unfamiliar to British eyes. This is a pity as, for instance, his drawings of Rome made during his four years in the city (now mostly in Berlin) remain the most complete record of its monuments and antiquities that we have from that time. His mature work includes the largest surviving painted altarpiece of the 16th century from northern Europe, originally commissioned by the church of St Lawrence in Alkmaar, now hidden away in Linkoping Cathedral in Sweden – an astounding achievement. I do hope you can join me for . This webinar has been made possible be a series of recent exhibitions of his work, together with those of artists who were highly influential in his development. These were in Berlin last summer and more recently in Haarlem and Alkmaar and all three were outstanding in doing justice to this remarkable artist.