Museum Mayer van den Bergh, in collaboration with the Rubenianum, is organizing an international conference dedicated to architectural painting, especially from the Antwerp School, and related subjects. The conference offers the opportunity for researchers to present the results of their research in a 25-minute presentation.
Registration is mandatory and open until October 5, 2016.
Registration fee includes: coffee, refreshments breaks, lunch and visit to the exhibition ‘Divine Interiors’ in Museum Mayer van den Bergh.
Download the program of the colloquium (PDF)
Information from the call for papers, 28 July 2016
This summer, Museum Mayer van den Bergh, Antwerp, is opening wide the doors to the 17th century. Divine Interiors, a unique exhibition of architectural paintings, leads visitors into the sacred interiors of churches from that time.
When the Iconoclastic Fury took Antwerp by storm in 1566, the city’s churches were stripped of their former opulence. Religious instability followed and there was a massive exodus of artists from the city. The meeting of Hendrik van Steenwijck and Hans Vredeman de Vries in Aachen resulted in the emergence of a new genre: architectural painting, known as ‘perspectives’. The return of a number of artists to Antwerp marked the beginning of Antwerp architectural painting, a genre that reached its high point under the auspices of the ‘Antwerp School’. This new painting style gained many passionate adherents, who painted thousands of church interiors and, to a lesser extent, some secular interiors as well. The paintings tended to be small and highly ornamental, which is one reason why they were such a popular genre during the 17th century and were considered collectibles.