Biography

Pieter van Bloemen was a Flemish artist, and master in the Antwerp Guild of Saint Luke. A prolific painter, he was at the height of his career during an extended stay in Rome from 1687-1692. He mostly painted landscapes with figures and animals either travelling or at rest, although he also painted military and genre scenes. Van Bloemen’s landscapes are imbued with a distinctly ‘Roman’ atmosphere, his figures and animals are often placed in scenes that include the ancient ruins. In Rome, he joined the Schildersbent, a confraternity of Dutch and Flemish artists who called themselves ‘Bentveughels’ (birds of a feather) and assigned each other mocking nicknames. Van Bloemen’s was ‘Standaart’ (meaning banner or flag), undoubtedly because of the standards he included in his military paintings.