The gallery consists  of two rows of rooms (Netherlandish and German 15th and 16th century painting on the right, Dutch 17th century painting on the left) with a large room of ”history” painting at the end (works of the Dutch Caravaggesque painters, pre-Rembrandtists, and painters from Rembrandt’s circle) and the room of Flemish painting.

NETHERLANDISH AND GERMAN 15TH-16TH CENTURY PAINTING

Netherlandish religious painting of the second half of the 15th and the 16th century is represented by single devotional paintings intended for private prayer (for example the tondo The Head of Saint John the Baptist from Dirck Bouts’ s circle) and liturgical or devotional altars - the central panel of the polyptych The Martyrdom of Saint Crispin and Crispinian by Aert van den Bossche from1494,  altar wings with The Annunciation and Christ Appearing to His Mother by Barthlomäus Bruyn the Elder, and the triptychs: Lamentation of Christ by Jean Bellegambe,  The Allegory of the Immaculate Conception by a master from Bruges, and the Saint Gregory’s  Mass by a master from Cologne, dated around 1515 – 1520.

The Altar of Saint Reinhold, dated 1515-1516, deserves special attention. It is a polyptych with sculpted scenes from the life of Mary and paintings recounting the life of Christ painted by Joos van Cleve. Together with the altar panel of The Crucifixion by Pieter Coecke van Aelst, they present outstanding examples of Antwerp early Renaissance. The Italian trend in Netherlandish painting finds its crowning achievement in the Maerten van Heemskerck’s triptych of the Ecce Homo,  dated 1544, which connects the typical Netherlandish realism (donors’ portraits) with the expressive style of Michelangelo (biblical figures).

Influences of the Italian Renaissance are also visible in German painting of the 16th century – in Adam and Eve by Lucas Cranach the Elder, Hercules Fighting Antæus by Hans Baldung Grien, and Caritas Romana by Georg Pencz. Albrecht Dürer’s influence is manifest in the Mocking of Christ  by the Master of Messkirch. A high level of realism characterises the portraits created by Hans Schäufelein, Lucas Cranach the Elder, Barthel Beham, and Hermann tom Ring.

Among the independent genres of painting which emerged in the Netherlands at the turn of the 16th and 17th centuries, a place of significance is taken by the early landscape painting with views of forests by Gillis van Coninxloo and Jan Brueghel the Elder and a park landscape by David Vinckeboons. A rare, late painting by Pieter Aertsen The Deeds of Christian Charity, dated 1575, can be considered as anticipation of future genre scenes while still life has a very important place in the early work of Frans Snyders, The Kitchen, from1609.

FLEMISH PAINTING

The rich selection of 17th century Flemish painting is displayed according to genres, from landscapes and still lifes, through genre scenes and portraits to mythological and religious subjects.

Landscapes are represented by both the early works in the tradition of Pieter Brueghel the Elder (Gillis Mostaert) or  Rudolphinian painting (Pieter Stevens) and by the later, baroque composistions (David Teniers the Younger, Jan Peeters, Jacques d’Arthois). In the cabinet of still lifes, the viewer’s attention is drawn to the dynamic Fight of a Cock with a Turkey by Paul de Vos and to compositions of lush flower garlands (Daniel Seghers and Cerstiaen Luycks with David Teniers the Younger).

Amongst genre scenes, the Card Game by Theodor Rombouts makes an important example  the Flemish Caravaggism and The Shepherd’s Idyll by Jan Thomas van Ypern shows an exuberant affirmation of rural life, expressed by means typical for the baroque painting of Rubens circle.

Various types of portraits include an intimate genre image (Man with a Lute by Gonzales Coques), burgher (The Portrait of a Young Man by Pieter Franchoys) and court portrait (Justus van Egmont, Marie Louise Gonzague) as well as a group representation (The Family Portrait in the Garden by Jan van Kessel the Younger).

On the highest level of painting hierarchy stands the so-called history painting, depicting mythological and religious scenes. This category is represented by the baroque works from Rubens workshop (Virgin and Child), paintings by Jacob Jordaens (The Holy Family with Little St. John, his Parents and Angels, Adam and Eve, The Triumph of Prince Frederick Henry the Duke of Orange) and Abraham Janssens (Ecce Homo and The Lamentation).

DUTCH PAINTING

The gallery of Dutch painting opens with a late mannerist work, Christ with the Cross and a Chalice by Cornelis Cornelisz van Haarlem dated around 1592, striking on account of its innovative interpretation of the subject of the Eucharist. The highlights of the gallery are paintings of the Caravaggesque and pre-Rembrandtist painters, and the artists from Rembrandt’s circle - his students, those who actually cooperated with him as well as his contemporary imitators. There is also a rich collection of portraits, still lifes, landscapes and architectural views, and genre scenes.

Of the pre-Rembrandt works, a place of honour must be accorded to The Feast of Esther, dated around 1618, by Pieter Lastman, Rembrandt’s teacher. The Gallery’s most eminent work of a Dutch follower of Caravaggio is King David Playing the Harp and a Choir of Angels by Hendrick ter Brugghen, dated 1628; it presents a fascinating study of old age contrasted with youth. Among typical scenes of social entertainment, the most significant is The Card Game by Wouter Pietersz II Crabeth. The Caravaggesque episode in the work of Jan Lievens is represented by two paintings - The Boy Lightning a Torch and The Boy With a Pipe, Blowing on Cinders, dated around 1625, which also introduce us to Rembrandt’s circle. The most significant work of Rembrandt’s students and assistants is the early Carel Fabritius piece entitled The Raising of Lasarus dated around 1645 and Jan Victors’s Jacob Blessing Joseph’s Sons. The classical trend of historic painting fashionable in the second half of the 17th century is represented by Achilles with the Daughters of Lycomedes (1664) by Jan de Bray.

The collection of portraits represents various formulae of depiction, from the restrained realistic and psychological rendition (Portrait of an Old Woman by Ferdinand Bol) to the cosmopolitan, formal “court” manner (Portrait of Johana de Geer-Trip with Daughter by Ferdinand Bol, dated 1661 or, Portrait of a Young Woman as Diana by Abraham van der Temple, dated around 1669).

The Dutch realistic, topographically accurate landscape (The Road Through the Dunes by Salomon van Ruysdael dated 1631) stands in contrast to the baroque dramatic type (The Waterfall by Allaert van Everdingen and The Mountain Stream by Jacob van Ruisdael). The Italianate landscape is represented by the works of  Bartholomeus Breenbergh and Cornelis Poelenburgh, and the exotic landscape by Frans Post’s The Brazilian Landscape.

The monochromatic tendency is visible in the field of still lifes (The Dessert  by Willem Claesz Heda, dated 1637), (which also features a rich “banquet” formula) and in the church interiors, so called  kerkinterieurs (The Interior of St. Bavo’s Church in Haarlem by Pieter Saenredam, dated 1635).

Two aspects of Dutch genre painting are revealed in the contrast between the quiet mood of silence and concentration in Gerard ter Borch’s The Officer Writing a Letter and the garrulous anecdote and mocking moral admonition of Jan Steen’s The Choice Between Wealth and Youth.