Skip to main content

Nicolaes Maes Art

Dutch, 1634-1693

Nicolaes Maes was a Dutch Golden Age painter of genre and portraits. He was born in Dordrecht, the son of Gerrit Maes, a prosperous merchant, and Ida Herman Claesdr. In about 1648, he went to Amsterdam, where he entered Rembrandt's studio. Before his return to Dordrecht in 1653, Maes painted a few Rembrandtesque genre pictures, with life-size figures and in a deep glowing scheme of color, like The Reverie at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, The Card Players at the National Gallery, and The Children with a Goat Carriage. So closely did his early style resemble that of Rembrandt, that the last-named picture, and other canvases in the Leipzig and Budapest galleries and in the collection of Lord Radnor, were or are still ascribed to Rembrandt. In his best period, from 1655–65, Maes devoted himself to the domestic genre on a smaller scale, retaining to a great extent the magic of color he had learned from Rembrandt. Only on rare occasions did he treat scriptural subjects, as in Hagar's Departure, which has been ascribed to Rembrandt. His favorite subjects were women spinning, or reading the Bible, or preparing a meal. Maes had a particular fascination with the subject of lacemaking and made almost a dozen versions on this subject. While he continued to reside in Dordrecht until 1673, when Maes settled in Amsterdam, he visited or even lived in Antwerp between 1665–67. His Antwerp period coincides with a complete change in style and subject. He devoted himself almost exclusively to portraiture and abandoned the intimacy and glowing color harmonies of his earlier work for a careless elegance which suggests the influence of Van Dyck. So great indeed was the change, that it gave rise to the theory of the existence of another Maes, of Brussels. His registered pupils were Justus de Gelder, Margaretha van Godewijk, Jacob Moelaert, and Johannes Vollevens. Maes died in Amsterdam. Maes is well represented at the London National Gallery by five paintings: The Cradle, The Dutch Housewife, The Idle Servant, The Card Players, and a man's portrait. At Amsterdam, besides the splendid examples to be found at the Rijksmuseum, is The Inquisitive Servant of the Six collections. At Buckingham Palace is The Listening Girl (repetitions exist), and at Apsley House Selling Milk and The Listener. Other notable examples are at the Berlin, Brussels, St Petersburg, the Hague, Frankfort, Hanover, Ottawa and Munich galleries.

to
1
1
1
1
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
4
3
4
3
3
3
1
4
4
4
4
4
7,786
4,999
2,504
1,374
4
3
1
Artist: Nicolaes Maes
17th century portrait of a lady
By Nicolaes Maes
Located in Bath, Somerset
Portrait of a lady by Dutch Golden Age painter Nicolaes Maes (1634-1693). Half-length, within a feigned oval, the lady wears a pearl necklace and earrings, an ivory silk gown adorned...
Category

17th Century Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

A pair of Dutch 17th century old master portraits of a husband and wife
By Nicolaes Maes
Located in Bath, Somerset
A rare pair of three-quarter length 'marriage' portraits by one of the foremost dutch portrait painters of the 17th century, Nicolaes Maes (Dordrecht 1634-1693 Amsterdam). The gentleman signed middle left 'Maes 1679'. Oil on canvas in dutch style ebonised frames. Dimensions 58 x 47.5cms each. The gentleman is shown in a landscape at dusk, leaning against a stone capital, wearing a white chemise decorated with lace, a black coat and a brown silk cloak draped across his body. The lady is elegantly dressed in an ivory silk gown decorated with jewels on the neckline and shoulders, the contrasting sleeves in gold fabric, with a rose pink silk cloak draped over her shoulder and bodice. She wears a pearl necklace and earrings with her fair hair worn up with ringlets falling down onto her chest in the fashionable style of the day. She stands with one hand touching a lock of her hair as she rests her arm on the bowl of a stone water drinking fountain...
Category

17th Century Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Portrait of Noble Lady
By Nicolaes Maes
Located in New Orleans, LA
Signed and dated "N MAE / 1691" (lower right) Oil on canvas A masterful example of 17th-century Dutch portraiture, this magnificent oil on canvas comes alive with luminous color, dramatic contrast and extraordinary detail. The work was composed by Nicolaes Maes, an artist widely regarded as the most prominent portrait painter of his era in Amsterdam. Fashionably styled, Portrait of a Noble Lady exemplifies the mature style of Maes, executed with the same artistry and attention to detail he imparted on his most important private commissions. This work by Maes comes from the second half of his career and follows in the rich tradition of the great Flemish Baroque painters Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck. Like these artists, Maes excels at not only capturing his subjects with a technical perfection but also their inherent elegance and grace. The sitter is draped in luxurious white and red silks and pearls, underscoring the importance and prosperity of his wealthy clientele. She is placed against a dark backdrop, enabling a striking chiaroscuro effect characteristic of the artist’s portraits. Maes’s immense talent for detail and composition is clearly evident. In both palette and proportion, it embodies the somewhat austere style preferred by the artist, which emphasized a painstaking study of the costumes, hairstyles and accessories of his subjects. Such elaborate and highly detailed costuming in portraiture was a fashionable way to show one's wealth in the 17th century, particularly among the emerging class of wealthy merchants. Similar works by the painter can be found in the Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam), National Gallery (London), National Gallery of Art (Washington, D.C.), Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) and Philadelphia Museum of Art, among others. Nicolaes Maes was born in Dordrecht in 1634 to a prosperous cloth merchant. Around 1848, he moved to Amsterdam to study under Rembrandt for several years before returning to his native Dordrecht, where he established himself as a painter of genre scenes and portraits. In the 1650s, Maes traveled to Antwerp where he studied the work of Flemish artists such as Peter Paul Rubens, Anthony van Dyck and Jacob Jordaens...
Category

17th Century Baroque Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Oil, Canvas

17th century portrait of a lady
By Nicolaes Maes
Located in Bath, Somerset
Portrait of a lady richly dressed in a purple silk gown with white sleeves, a gold coloured cloak draped across one shoulder, her blonde curls worn up...
Category

17th Century Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Related Items
Portrait of a Gentleman in Scarlet Robe Holding Flowers c.1675, Oil on canvas
Located in London, GB
Titan Fine Art present this striking portrait, which was painted by one of the most talented artists working in England during the last half of the 17th century, John Greenhill. Gre...
Category

17th Century Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Portrait of a Lady in Green Dress & Pearl Jewellery c.1660 Painting John Wright
By John Michael Wright
Located in London, GB
In this exquisite work, painted around the time of the Great Fire of London in 1666, a beautiful young woman is wearing a green dress over a white chemise and a russet-coloured scarf...
Category

17th Century Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Baroque Style Oil Portrait, The Laughing Cavalier, Follower of Frans Hals
Located in Cotignac, FR
19th Century oil on canvas portrait of a cavalier. The painting is signed or annotated top right. There is a supplier's trade stamp to the back of the canvas. A wonderful jewel of a...
Category

19th Century Baroque Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Portrait of Frances, Viscountess Scudamore in a Silver Dress & Blue Cloak
By Charles Jervas
Located in London, GB
Portrait of Frances, Viscountess Scudamore in a Silver Dress and Blue Cloak c.1709-1719 By Charles Jervas (1675-1739) This elegant and graceful portrait, presented by Titan Fine Ar...
Category

18th Century Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Italian 18th Century Oval Religious Oil on Canvas Painting with Saint Dominic
By Francesco de Mura
Located in Firenze, IT
This beautiful Italian 18th Century old masters oil painting on oval canvas with giltwood frame is attributed to Solimena and features a religious scene. In this splendid oval-shaped painting are depicted Saint Dominic...
Category

18th Century Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

18th Century Oil on Canvas Portrait, Major Alexander Brown in Military Uniform.
By Sir David Wilkie
Located in Cotignac, FR
18th Century Military portrait of a young officer in Napoleonic period military dress. The painting is not signed but the subject is Major Alexander Brown. The work is oil on canvas later mounted on board and presented in a fine 'Regence style' carved gilt frame. There are labels to the back referring to the subject, 'Major Brown of Trinity' and a framers trade label from Edinburgh. A magnificent and imposing portrait of a young military officer in the prime of his life. His red uniform adorned with fine buttons, fringed epaulettes and high gilt collar. His ruddy complexion offset by his stylish hair, a quiff and swept forward to the sides as was the fashion at the time. Sir David Wilkie RA (18 November 1785 – 1 June 1841) was a Scottish painter, especially known for his portraits, including formal royal ones, and scenes from his travels to Europe and the Middle East. He painted successfully in a wide variety of genres, including historical scenes. His main base was in London, but he died and was buried at sea, off Gibraltar, returning from his first trip to the Middle East. He was sometimes known as the "people's painter". He was Principal Painter in Ordinary to King William IV and Queen Victoria. Apart from royal portraits, his best-known painting today is probably The Chelsea Pensioners Reading the Waterloo Dispatch of 1822 in Apsley House. Sir David Wilkie was actually admitted in 1799 (despite only being 14) through the influence of the Earl of Leven...
Category

Late 18th Century Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Board

Portrait of Raimondo di Montecuccoli in armor with a marshal's staff. Circa 1660
Located in Firenze, IT
Portrait of Raimondo di Montecuccoli in armor with a marshal's staff. Dutch School. Oil on canvas Dutch School. Circle of Peter Nason (Amsterdam, 1612 - 1690 The Hague). Portrait of a military commander in armor with a marshal's staff. In the portrait of the illustrious general Raimondo Montecuccoli, it can be observed that he still appears without the Order of the Golden Toson. This detail suggests that the portrait could be dated before 1664. Raimondo Montecuccoli was a famous general and military strategist of the 17th century in the service of the Habsburg Empire. Born in 1609 in Italy, Montecuccoli fought in numerous European wars, distinguishing himself for his tactical and strategic abilities. He is best known for his victories during the Thirty Years' War and the war against the Turks. Montecuccoli is also remembered for his writings on military theory, which influenced subsequent generations of commanders. He died in 1680. Montecuccoli came from a noble Italian family but chose to pursue a military career in the service of the Habsburg Empire. He studied in Vienna and fought in numerous battles and military campaigns, earning the trust of Emperor Leopold I. Montecuccoli was known for his discipline, his ability to adapt to situations on the battlefield, and his skill in leading troops with cunning and determination. Montecuccoli fought in many significant battles during the Thirty Years' War and the wars against the Turks. Some of his most famous battles include the Battle of Lens in 1648, where he achieved a decisive victory against French forces, and the Battle of Vezekény in 1664, where he defeated the Ottoman army. He faced adversaries such as the renowned French general Turenne and the great Turkish commander Kara Mustafa...
Category

17th Century Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Portrait of a Lady in Silk Dress & Blue wrap in oval, Mary Beale, Oil on canvas
By Mary Beale
Located in London, GB
Portrait of a Lady in an Elaborate Stone Cartouche c.1675-80 Mary Beale (1632-1699) Titan Fine Art present this superb portrait where the sitter has been portrayed wearing a low-cut white chemise under a gold silk robe with a draped light...
Category

17th Century Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

GIRL WITH KITTEN- In the Manner of F.Ballavoine's - Italy Oil on canvas paint
By Giulio Di Sotto
Located in Napoli, IT
Girl with kitten - Giulio Di Sotto Italia 2008 - Oil on canvas cm. 60x50 Frame available on request from our workshop. This painting is Giulio Di Sotto’s personal reinterpretation of the 19th century French painter Jules Frédéric Ballavoine...
Category

Early 2000s Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Portrait of a Lady by a Woodland Stream Holding a Shell c.1690; Oil on canvas
By Harman Verelst
Located in London, GB
This elegant portrait, presented by Titan Fine Art, depicts a beautiful young lady seated in a wooded area, resting one arm on a rock, before a landscape and a warm evening sky. She is wearing a white smock under russet-coloured silks, loosely held in place by an immense black diamond clasp on the sleeve, and her body is enveloped in a voluptuous swag of azure silk; the costly fabrics and jewels reveal that the sitter was a paragon of a wealthy and privileged society that she belonged to. Much of the attractiveness of this portrait resides in its graceful composition and the beauty of the youthful sitter. The flowing water in the left margin of the picture and the shell that she holds are compositional devises often used at the time to allude to her potential as wife and mother, recalling Proverbs, Chapter 5, Verse 18: “Let thye fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of thye youth”. Symbolism was a key component to many works of this period and contemporary viewers would have deciphered them immediately. Such images exude a sense of status and Augustan decorum, and were highly influential in transmitting these values into the first half of the eighteenth century. Held in a good quality and condition gilded antique frame. Herman Verelst was from a great dynasty of painters, with many members achieving great success. Specialising in portraits and still life paintings, he was one of the legions of foreign-born artists working in England at the time. Today, many of his pictures are given to other artists or are simply relegated to that term “circle of” which is a great disservice because he had an ability to render faces and drapery on par with some of the best artists at the time. Herman’s work is quite distinctive in the way he rendered faces and this particular pose was a favourite. His faces were portrayed with great skill often using the sfumato technique which gave them a very smooth feel to the skin with no hard lines, and many known works by him show that he could also render drapery with great affect. Our painting was painted in the 1690’s. His father, Pieter Hermansz Verelst...
Category

17th Century Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

'Rebekah at the Well', Follower of Luca Giordano, Early 19th Century Figural Oil
Located in Santa Cruz, CA
An early 19th century, figural oil of a young woman with chestnut hair, shown wearing a headscarf and glancing towards the viewers left. A detail from a copy of 'Rebeca at the Well',...
Category

19th Century Baroque Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Masonite, Oil

Male and female portrait, both in silk kimono, possibly textile dealers
By Christoffel Lubieniecki
Located in Amsterdam, NL
CHRISTOFFEL LUBIENIECKI (1659-1729) Pair of portraits of a gentleman and a lady, both in silk kimono, before a country house (circa 1680) Indistinctly signed “C.......” on a box under the man’s left hand Oil on canvas, 79.5 x 67 cm each Both sitters are portrayed wearing a silk “Japanese” coat. During the second half of the seventeenth the Japanese silk coat, an adapted Japanese kimono, became a real vogue in the Dutch elite. The exclusive Dutch trade contacts with Japan can explain the popularity of the kimono-style silk coats in the Netherlands. Everybody who could afford one, dressed in such a fashionable and comfortable coat and, like the present sitters, some proud owners had themselves portrayed in a “Japanese” coat often together with an oriental carpet to underline their standing and international connections. These portraits are the work of the Polish-born portraitist Christoffel Lubieniecki (also known as Lubienitski, Lubinitski or Lubiniecki) Lubieniecki was first trained in Hamburg under Julian Stuhr and after 1675 in Amsterdam under Adriaen Backer and Gerard de Lairesse. He specialized in landscapes, generally of an Italianate character, and in portraits. The loving execution of these contented burghers, enjoying the garden vistas of their country house, places him alongside Amsterdam portraitists such as Constantijn Netscher and Michiel van Musscher...
Category

1680s Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Oil, Canvas

Previously Available Items
17th century Dutch old master portrait of a noble lady ca. 1680
By Nicolaes Maes
Located in Aartselaar, BE
Very fine Dutch 17th century old master portrait of a young lady by Nicolaes Maes This three-quarter length portrait depicts a raven-haired beauty, seated in an elegant and mysterio...
Category

17th Century Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Portrait of a Young Dutch Gentleman by Nicolaes Maes, Oil on Panel, Old Master
By Nicolaes Maes
Located in Stockholm, SE
In late 17th century Amsterdam, no one could rival Nicolas Maes (1634– 1693) in the art of portraiture. As one of Rembrandts most accomplished pupils, Maes explored both genre painti...
Category

1680s Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Oil, Oak, Panel

Portrait of a Gentleman, Dutch , 17th century.
By Nicolaes Maes
Located in Bath, Somerset
Portrait of a gentleman, half-length, in a feigned oval wearing a red velvet coat under a brown cloak in a landscape. Signed and dated lower right 'N. ...
Category

17th Century Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Oil

The Cradle
By Nicolaes Maes
Located in Saint Augustine, FL
An original hand-colored copperplate engraving on wove paper after Dutch artist Nicolaes Maes (1632-1693) titled "The Cradle". Engraved by English artist Le...
Category

1870s Old Masters Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Copper

Portrait of a Young Lady Beside a Fountain
By Nicolaes Maes
Located in Bath, Somerset
Portrait of a young lady, half-length in a landscape, wearing a red cloak, beside a fountain. Signed and dated lower right 'N. Maes 1675'. Oil on canvas in a painted oval. Provenance: Agnes Duncan Miller, London Anonymous sale, Christie's London, 4th December 1936, lot 32, sold to Mitchell Edward B. Taggart, by whom gifted to the Indianapolis Museum of Art in 1963 and deaccessioned, Christie's New York, 16th June 2009, lot 20 Private collection, Dallas, USA Nicolaes Maes (1634-1693) was born in Dordrecht and was the son of Gerrit Maes, a prosperous merchant. In c.1648 he went to Amsterdam and became a pupil of Rembrandt, learning from his masters use of deep intensity of colour in his work. In this period he painted mostly genre scenes such as women lacemaking or reading the Bible, before returning to Dordrecht in 1653. In c. 1660 Maes began specialising in portraits, moving away from the Rembrandt style...
Category

18th Century and Earlier Nicolaes Maes Art

Materials

Oil

Nicolaes Maes art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Nicolaes Maes art available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Nicolaes Maes in oil paint, paint, canvas and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 18th century and earlier and is mostly associated with the Old Masters style. Not every interior allows for large Nicolaes Maes art, so small editions measuring 14 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Studio of Sir Peter Lely, Sir Godfrey Kneller, Flemish School, and 17th Century. Nicolaes Maes art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $20,386 and tops out at $88,500, while the average work can sell for $50,965.

Artists Similar to Nicolaes Maes

Recently Viewed

View All