(Well, cats and kitties, I'm back... bringing to you what is probably my last post featuring spirals in paintings from the long past. It was a wonderful rabbit-hole-journey, but I think I've finally come to the end of this particular tunnel... and that's the good news! There are a number of images and bits of info to document though, and experience tells me that it will take 2-3 parts to cover them all, but, I feel pretty confident about this material, so, well, I'm just aiming for a "job well done" and hoping some of you, at least, will find it worth the bumpy ride!)
Indeed, the so-called Bent became a bohemian epicenter of drunkenness and debauchery. Their presiding deity was Bacchus, inventor of wine and god of both liquid and artistic inspiration. The exhibition opens with several celebratory images of Bacchus, including the Caravaggesque “Bacchus and a Drinker” by Bartolomeo Manfredi and Dirck van Baburen’s “Pan,” almost certainly a self-portrait of the artist in the guise of this Greek deity famed for both his music and sexual prowess.
These works are accompanied by lively sketches of contemporary Bent artists, attributed to Leonaert Bramer and another — anonymous — Dutchman. Their subjects included Claude Lorrain, capacious wine glass in hand, and the Italian Caravaggesque painter Artemisia Gentileschi, dressed as a male and sporting a false mustache.
...Despite being rewarded with substantial sums for their work, both Guido Reni, who was addicted to gambling, and de Boulogne ended up in paupers’ graves. Giovanni Baglione, Lorrain and Manfredi all fathered illegitimate children, and Giovanni Lanfranco, Nicolas Poussin and van Laer were to die of syphilis. These artists spent their everyday lives in close proximity to the poor, the marginalized and the criminal, rubbing shoulders with them in cheap lodging-houses, taverns, dark drinking dives, gambling dens and prisons. This not only gave them an intimate knowledge of Rome’s underworld but, evidently, fostered in them a sense of fellow feeling, even respect, for its inhabitants."
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I suspect that, after all is said and done, to discover the actual source of all the mysterious "gold" present in Dutch Golden Age paintings, one needn't look any further than that underground society of bohemian artists living in Italy - those odd "birds of a feather" - the Bentvueghels. Back in the days of Lachtropius, when I first discovered mention of them, I intuited they might be an important clue - especially in light of their connections with Italy (possibly the "home" of the golden triangle spiral) (GTS) - but after taking some time to analyze a number of the Bentvueghel painters and their images, I now think its possible to draw some conclusions. (!)
At first glance, the Bentvueghels seem like no more than a rowdy bunch of a decadent, male artists who enjoyed an exclusive fraternity... more or less a parody of a masonic lodge (before the latter even formally existed). So, ones first impression is that it was a boy's club for men set in post-Renaissance Italy; doubtlessly a sunny artist's playground for those journeying from northern Europe.
But, perhaps, the Bentvueghels' theatrical flamboyancy - see painting above (and
engraving to your right) - was a smoke screen... hiding activities of a more serious nature. We will never know. If their activities were a ruse, certainly a number of critics fell for it and regarded them as anything but serious artists or even members of an authentic art movement.
Regarding the golden ratio and my own analysis, however, well, the evidence is kind of intriguing. While there were group members who (seemingly) used the pentagonaI spiral (either knowingly or unconsciously) - I have, thus far, counted 12 - there were others who apparently did not. Of those who did, some were also
Caravaggisti... and, as we've seen, Caravaggio was the go-to "golden" expert of his time. And, yet, not all of the Bentvueghel Caravaggisti seemed to use the spiral. So, there's that mystery.
And, then, there are further complications. At least 6 of the artists left no surviving work, so, those artists are, for the most part, lost to us. Moreover, it seems, for whatever reason, the Bentvueghels themselves were not exactly "survivors", most dying in early middle age and a number - at least seven - dying much younger. A few made it past 60 and led fairly normal lives, but these, apparently, were the exception and not the rule...
When it comes down to the sheer number of Bentvueghels, we cannot be certain. For instance, I came across a footnote in an article which names members that do not appear on the Wiki list. Also, we have to consider that the Bentvueghel artists lived and painted on the fringes of society, amongst the impoverished and the (accompanying) criminal element. That is, amid gamblers, drunkards, prostitutes, thieves - or the odd, wandering minstrel - it wouldn't be unusual for obscure artists such as these to fall off the radar altogether in the 16th and 17th centuries. Which leads us to, yet, another factor: the Bentvueghels were active from 1620 to 1720 - one hundred years!
Lastly, we have some drawings of the group - our only visual documentation and not a lot of it.
Inset left (above)and
right are engravings from 1700, but we do not know the original artist, only the engraver,
Matthijs Pool. The artist might be Domenicus van Wijnen (a member who will appear in Part II) whose original
painting was the basis for the first engraving shown above... but, as van Wijnen was an active member, his agenda might not have been entirely his own. In any case, all three engravings are intriguing, and all of them have quite a bit of accompanying script. (If you can read it, let us know what it says!)
Regarding the engravings, there's a few mysterious items in them that bear further inspection. If I come up with anything of value, I'll add it here. Until then, I have little to say about the Bentvueghels as a group. If the members had an artistic vision or technique in common then there's little evidence... well, apart from the Caravaggisti and those members who intentionally (or unintentionally) embedded a GTS! Otherwise, we seem to have a group of relatively young male artists from the Netherlands who traveled to Italy, banded together... and then went wild!
Below is a selection of Bentvueghels (in alphabetical order) and examples of their work.
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Valentin de Boulogne (1591 – 1916)
When I first came upon the image above by Valentin de Boulogne I was gob-smacked. What in the world could he have meant by this strange character? This version of John the Baptist hardly looks biblical... more like some time-travelling refugee from a 20th century music festival looking to flag down a plane back into the future. I actually looked thru some semaphore images (see here) but, not only does the semaphore alphabet code employ 2 flags, it doesn't employ legs and is a fairly modern invention.
In any case, I was wholly mystified, but, knowing Boulogne, the image almost screamed golden ratio and, sure enough, the GTS almost created itself while I watched.
But, there are a few little tidbits about Valentin you should know before you draw any conclusions.
To begin with, he's not the only "French connection" associated with the Bentvueghels, he has a counterpart:
Nicolas Régnier, who was born in northern France (Maubeuge) in the same year Valentin was. Now, look at Régnier's (equally strange) version of St. John the Baptist
inset left (also featured in the Régnier section) and tell me there's nothing remotely strange about the similarity between the 2 time-travelling refugees! Seriously, it's almost eerie.
So, there's that.
But, there's more... because both Valentin and Nicolas were not merely Caravaggisti, but also followers of Caravaggio's (alleged) former servant and housemate,
Bartolomeo Manfredi... and Manfredi was no slouch when if came to the GTS (and/or nude & nearly-nude young men) either. I've featured two of Manfredi's paintings (sourced from his Wiki entry) below. Note the termination of the spiral in the second painting. Just saying.
Incidentally, the middle image resembles John the Apostle - or John the Evangelist - more than it does John the Baptist. For information regarding the confusion of the three "Johns" see
Da Vinci and Other Codes (
Part I &
II).
Meanwhile, I've neglected to show much of Valentin's own work, so I'll include one more painting that features two spirals and allegedly what might be a cameo appearance by the artist himself! It's entitled
The Fortune Teller with Soldiers, circa 1620. Valentin would be the suspicious looking character (far left with the red hat) picking the fortune teller's pocket (and/or stealing her purse)! Note how the triangle in the second spiral points directly to his hand.
To conclude this section, while little is known about Valentin de Boulogne, we have a great deal more info about him than many of the other "Bents" (as they are often referred to) (and we won't go there right now...) Suffice to say, he died around the age of 40 without issue. There's
articles and
videos about him over at the Metropolitan Museum site (regarding a 2017 exhibit) for those who might be interested.
BTW, Valentin's "Bent" code name was "Innamorato" (Lover).
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Dirck van Baburen (1595 –1624)
"Dirck van Baburen was the youngest member of the so-called Utrecht Caravaggisti, a group of artists all hailing from the city of Utrecht or its environs, who were inspired by the work of the famed Italian painter, Caravaggio (1571-1610). Around 1607, Van Baburen entered the studio of Paulus Moreelse (1571-1638), an important Utrecht painter who primarily specialized in portraiture. In this studio the fledgling artist probably received his first, albeit indirect, exposure to elements of Caravaggio’s style which were already trickling north during the first decade of the new century. After a four-year apprenticeship with Moreelse, Van Baburen departed for Italy shortly after 1611; he would remain there, headquartered in Rome, until roughly the summer of 1620. Caravaggio was already deceased by the time Van Baburen arrived in the eternal city. Nevertheless, his Italian period work attests to his familiarity with the celebrated master’s art. Moreover, Van Baburen was likely friendly with one of Caravaggio’s most influential devotees, the enigmatic Lombard painter Bartolomeo Manfredi (1582-1622). Manfredi and Van Baburen were recorded in 1619 as living in the same parish in Rome. Manfredi’s interpretations of Caravaggio’s are profoundly affected Van Baburen as well as other members of the Utrecht Caravaggisti."
- Excerpt from an illuminating article found
here.
Dirck van Baburen - code name: "Biervlieg"(Beer-fly) - was born in the Netherlands. Although beginning his artistic career painting the (seemingly) obligatory religious scenes, after his trip to Italy, his involvement with the "Bents," and his friendship with Bartolomeo Manfredi, his subject matter changed. While sometimes portraying classical themes, he eventually concentrated on musicians... often using the same musician (possibly using himself as the model). An example of this would be the painting that introduces this post,
Young Man Singing. Another example would be the amazing character above. Note the interesting termination of the spiral as it winds around the violin and the alignment of the triangle with the tilted glass.
Upon his return to Utrecht, he helped form the
Utrecht Caravaggisti,* which broke up several years after his death at the tender age of 27.
Regarding
Young Man Singing (who brings to mind a medieval
Trouvère) while I liked the placement of the first spiral shown the best - the singer seems to be holding the spiral in his hand and peering through it - there were two other possibilities which might've fulfilled the painting's theme more accurately. I've posted these
inset right and directly below.
Another (delightful) painting by Van Baburen is posted below. The triangle is spectacular! Note the way it aligns with the lute on the left, and the violin in the center... and if you extend the triangle's plumbline (through its base) it will intercept the flute on the right.
That Van Barburen should concentrate his efforts on musicians - and this trend started in the Renaissance - is a very cool thing. Humanity was groping its way out the Dark Ages into the Ages of Enlightenment and to accomplish this - or, perhaps, embellish this - they often (intuitively) portrayed the most scientific and mathematical - and, yet, emotional - form of art: music.
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| The Concert, 17th century, Dirck van Baburen. Geometry: 2022, DS. |
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Jean Ducamps (1600 -1648)
Jean Ducamps, a Flemish artist and considered one of the Northern Caravaggisti - Bent code name: "Braeff" (Brave) - did art historians a disservice by never signing any of his paintings! It wasn't until they found a description of the somewhat decadent angel in
Allegory of Virtuous Love (above) that they were finally able to piece together a probable oeuvre.
Apparently (and allegedly), he lived with a variety of men while in Italy, but, then the bottom line of his Wiki biographical section is this:
"It is not clear when he died as all trace of him is lost in Spain."(Uh-oh... that doesn't sound too good!)
Another painting by the enigmatic Ducamps - St. John the Evangelist - is inset left. Note the similarity between the face of this figure and the angel's. Are these paintings self-portraits or did the artist idealize the face of a companion or lover?
***
Well, here I am, finally at the end of Monster Part I! Monster Part II still needs a little work, however, so, I'm going to spare you any summations or evaluations till the end of Part III. (Ha! Dodged that bullet!) ;-)
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*The Utrecht Caravaggisti
Just when I thought I was quite done with Part I, I decided to investigate the Utrecht Caravaggisti (mentioned in the Van Baburen section). I'm rather glad I did if only for Honthorst's merry musician. Isn't it nice to know that artists were as subversive hundreds of years ago as they are now! Apparently, according to an article quoted in Part II, "Pictures showing insults were extremely popular with buyers." I bet they were!
I know that I got this spiral correct (or almost)... look at where the tip of the violinist's bow is piercing!
Jean Ducamps, a Flemish artist and considered one of the Northern Caravaggisti - Bent code name: "Braeff" (Brave) - did art historians a disservice by never signing any of his paintings! It wasn't until they found a description of the somewhat decadent angel in Allegory of Virtuous Love (above) that they were finally able to piece together a probable oeuvre.
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