In short

Spanjaert, known as ‘the monogrammist IS’, was a painter of genre scenes set in barn interiors, who was active in Delft between 1632 until 1644 and in Amsterdam from 1644 until his death.

About Jan Spanjaert

Dutch painter
Amsterdam 1589/90 – after 1655

Also known as ‘the Monogrammist IS’.

Painter of genre scenes, especially of barn interiors with prominent still lifes of barrels, buckets, cauldrons and vegetables. He also painted a few similar still lifes without any peasants and also a few religious scenes.

Fred Meijer and Adriaan van der Willigen think that Spanjaert might have been taught in the vicinity of Cornelis Saftleven (1607 – 1681) in Delft.

Spanjaert is documented in two towns:

• in Delft between 1632 until 1644;
• in Amsterdam from 1644 until his death.

In 1632 our painter joined the local painter’s guild in Delft and got married here that same year (this was already his second marriage).  

It should be noted that there is actually no fully signed painting known by our painter. Many of his paintings are monogrammed ‘IS (with the I passing through the S), as is our painting. The attribution to Jan Spanjaert of these paintings mongrammed “IS” was first suggested by Abraham Bredius (1855 – 1946) just after the First World War and has since then been generally accepted.

Dated works are known between 1636 and 1639.

According to Fred Meijer and Adriaan van der Willigen it is possible that Spanjaert may at a certain point have given up painting; in March 1665 a cloth-dyer signed a document in Amsterdam with the same ‘IS’ monogram (with the I passing through the S) as our painter.

Why should you buy painting?

Because it is a charming farm interior scene with a lively accumulation of copper vessels, a butter churn, terracotta pots and vegetables.