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Lot Essay
In mid-17th-century Amsterdam, prosperous burghers created a great demand for portraiture, producing fierce competition among artists for this lucrative market. Around 1640, changing taste ousted Rembrandt from his position as the city's leading portraitist, as wealthy merchants sought the services of Bartholomeus van der Helst, Govaert Flinck, Ferdinand Bol, and Isaac Luttichuys, the artist the present portraits. Born in London to Dutch parents, Luttichuys is first recorded in Amsterdam in 1638, and enjoyed a highly successful career as a portraitist there for decades, adroitly adapting his likenesses to fit current tastes. While his earlier works are reminiscent of Rembrandt, his later portraits are imbued with a refinement and elegance echoing Van der Helst and even the Flemish master Anthony van Dyck.
The identities of the sitters in the present life-size portraits are known due to their remarkable unbroken provenance, which can be traced through the family to the original commission, likely in 1666, the date on the female portrait. They depict brother and sister Andries (1636-1716) and Susanna Rijckaert (b. 1635), the children of Johannes Rijckaert (1609-1679) and Cornelia Merchijs (1614-1694), and grandchildren of Amsterdam merchant Pieter Merchijs (1582-before 1628) and his first wife, Sara Berrewijns. Since such portrait pairs typically depicted married couples in the 17th-century Netherlands, Bernd Ebert has suggested that these may have been painted at different times (op. cit., p. 589). In unusually fine condition, both portraits display the prodigious skill that kept Luttichuys popular among Amsterdam merchants for decades. At first glance, the pair appears to wear simple clothing composed primarily of black, gray and white tones, producing the cool palette characteristic of the artist. Upon closer inspection, however, subtler elements become apparent, such as the violet ribbons of the tablier de galants on Andries' breeches and the large jeweled brooch, earrings and rings worn by Susanna. By adeptly balancing modesty with ostentation, Luttichuys suggests that the siblings wish to appear appropriately modest, while leaving little doubt as to their fashionable taste and considerable wealth.
The identities of the sitters in the present life-size portraits are known due to their remarkable unbroken provenance, which can be traced through the family to the original commission, likely in 1666, the date on the female portrait. They depict brother and sister Andries (1636-1716) and Susanna Rijckaert (b. 1635), the children of Johannes Rijckaert (1609-1679) and Cornelia Merchijs (1614-1694), and grandchildren of Amsterdam merchant Pieter Merchijs (1582-before 1628) and his first wife, Sara Berrewijns. Since such portrait pairs typically depicted married couples in the 17th-century Netherlands, Bernd Ebert has suggested that these may have been painted at different times (op. cit., p. 589). In unusually fine condition, both portraits display the prodigious skill that kept Luttichuys popular among Amsterdam merchants for decades. At first glance, the pair appears to wear simple clothing composed primarily of black, gray and white tones, producing the cool palette characteristic of the artist. Upon closer inspection, however, subtler elements become apparent, such as the violet ribbons of the tablier de galants on Andries' breeches and the large jeweled brooch, earrings and rings worn by Susanna. By adeptly balancing modesty with ostentation, Luttichuys suggests that the siblings wish to appear appropriately modest, while leaving little doubt as to their fashionable taste and considerable wealth.