Joseph Henri Hubert Lies [1821-1865] after Godfried Schalcken [1643-1706]
Belgian Romantic painter, draughtsman and engraver
after Kinderen vrolijk maken met de Rommelpot in St. Nicolaas (Children merrymaking with the Rommelpot at St. Nicolaas, ca.1680s), ca.1840s
Oil on wood panel
15 x 14 inches [unframed]
Signed script in pencil on front of painting middle center (within the dark area under the archway) : ‘Lies’.

TITLES:
2023 Playful children
2022 Playful children
2020 Early European painting on panel of children

CONDITION:
Original condition.  Wood panel is bowed. Sold without a frame.

DESCRIPTION:
The Romantic painter Joseph Henri Hubert Lies (1821-1865) was born in Antwerp and studied at the Antwerp Royal Academy from 1834 to 1842 under Romantic painter Nicaise de Keyser (1813-1887).  It is likely during this period of training under de Keyser that Lies practiced copying masterworks of other painters.  Lies version of the German artist Godfried Schalcken’s (1643-1706) Kinderen vrolijk maken met de Rommelpot in St. Nicolaas (Children merrymaking with the Rommelpot at St. Nicolaas) is presented here.  Lies faces where not as mature as the original masterwork by Schalcken who first studied under two of Rembrandt van Rijn’s students, but Lies’ showed his great promise.

The painting depicts a curious nun from St. Nicolaas Church awoken by noise on the street of children playing musical instruments.  The drum-like instrument held within the top child’s hands called a ‘Rommelpot’ is an earthenware jug with a stretched dried pig’s bladder over the opening, hence, the title Children merrymaking with the Rommelpot at St. Nicolaas.

Other artist made copies of this work, including Adriaen Van Der Werff (1659-1722), whose effort was a bit more skilled than young Lies (sold in 2010 as Nocturnal children’s swarm).

The version for sale here was originally owned by collectors Michael Douglas Coe (1929-2019, Yale anthropologist) and Sophie Dobzhansky Coe (1933-1994, food anthropologist) likely purchase in the late 1980s and released back on the market around 2020 after Mr. Coe’s death.

We have included an image of the original (the one in a fancy frame – please not this is the original not the copy we are selling.  Our version has no frame.)  There is also an image included of the painter Joseph Henri Hubert Lies (1821-1865).

PROVENANCE:
2023 ( David Smernoff, New Haven, CT & New York, NY ) ;
2023 ( [withheld], MA ) ;
2022 ( [withheld], MA ) ;
2020 ( [withheld], CT ) ;
ca.1980s Private collection of Michael Douglas Coe (1929-2019, Yale anthropologist) and Sophie Dobzhansky Coe (1933-1994, food anthropologist) ;
after ca.1845 ( [unknown] ) ;
after ca.1845 Private collection of [unknown] ;
ca.1845 Joseph Henri Hubert Lies [1821-1865], the artist .

EXHIBITION:
2023 ( [withheld], MA ) ;
2022 ( [withheld], MA ) ;
2020 ( [withheld], CT ) ;

REFERENCES:
– [withheld], MA, 2023 ;
–  [withheld], MA, 2022 ;
–  [withheld], CT, 2020 ;

BIOGRAPHY:
Joseph Lies was a Belgian Romantic painter and draughtsman who worked in a variety of genres including history paintings, landscapes, genre scenes and portraits. He was born in Antwerp in 1821 into a family of modest means. His father worked as a blacksmith but died when Joseph was 13, after which his mother opened a hardware store to support the family.

Lies studied at the Antwerp Academy from 1834 to 1842. One of his teachers was Nicaise de Keyser, a leading figure in the Belgian Romantic-historical school. After completing his military service, Lies returned to Antwerp in 1843 to focus on his painting career. His most important works were created in the late 1850s.

Lies was influenced by his friend, the painter Henri Leys, a pioneer of the Realist movement in Belgium. After 1858, Lies’ landscapes took on a more realistic style reminiscent of Leys’ work. He also painted noteworthy portraits such as those of Leys’ wife and daughter. Lies gradually gained recognition, winning medals and appointments.

In 1859, Lies showed early signs of tuberculosis. He traveled to Italy for his health but returned to Antwerp in 1860. Despite his illness, he continued to paint successfully until his early death in 1865 at age 43. He was buried in Antwerp after a civil funeral service, as he was an atheist.