Dirck van Delen

Dirck van Delen or Dirck Christiaensz van Delen (c. 1605, Heusden – 16 May 1671, Arnemuiden) was a Dutch painter who specialized exclusively in architectural paintings, principally depicting palace perspectives and church interiors.

Van Delen was born in Heusden. It is not clear with whom he apprenticed. Art historian have proposed both Frans Hals and Hendrick Aerts (who also specialized in architectural paintings) as his presumed masters. More plausible are studies under Pieter van Bronckhorst and/or Bartholomeus van Bassen in Delft. The influence of Hendrick Aerts could have reached van Delen in this manner. An apprenticeship in Delft would also explain why Anthonie Palamedesz was able to provide the figures in works by van Delen as witnessed by co-signed examples.

Shortly after he was born his parents moved to Breda. He married in Middelburg in 1625. In 1626 he moved to Zeeland and became master of the toll house in Arnemuiden. From that year until his death he was registered in Arnemuiden where he sat on the town council, most of the time as burgomaster. He was a member of the Middelburg Guild of St. Luke from 1639-1665. In 1666 he gave to the Antwerp Chamber of rhetoric Olyftack a painting, which he had made in collaboration with the painter Theodoor Boeyermans. Two years later he became a member of the Olyftack.

His relative renown is evidenced by the fact that in the early 1630s van Delen received a commission to paint five large canvases (four of which are about 3.1 meters high) that were installed in a house in The Hague that was owned by Count Floris II van Pallandt van Culemborg.

His pupils included Daniël de Blieck and Hans Jurriaensz. van Baden.

He was widowed three times and had at least one son, but none of his children survived him.

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