Andreas Schelfhout was a Dutch painter, etcher and lithographer, known for his landscape paintings. He belonged to the Romantic movement and became one of the most influential Dutch landscape artists of his century. Schelfhout's Dutch winter scenes and frozen canals with skaters were already famous during his lifetime.
Early Life and Training
Schelfhout started as a house painter in the framing business of his father. He began painting pictures in his spare time, and after a well-received first exhibition in The Hague, his father sent him to receive proper training from
Joannes Breckenheimer, a stage designer, in The Hague. Schelfhout learned not only the technical aspects of painting but also made detailed studies of 17th-century Dutch landscape artists
Meindert Hobbema and
Jacob van Ruisdael.
Career and Works
In 1815, Schelfhout started his own workshop and became a member of the
Pulchri studio. He soon became famous for his technical excellence, sense of composition, and use of naturalistic colors. In 1819, he was awarded the Gold Medal at the exhibition in Antwerp, and in 1818, he became a member of the
Royal Academy for Visual Arts of Amsterdam. Schelfhout's reputation continued to grow, and in 1822, he was given the rank of Fourth Class Correspondent of the
Royal Dutch Institute.
Schelfhout provided training to many painters who would become famous in their own right, including
Johan Jongkind,
Charles Leickert, and
Nicholas Roosenboom. He also occasionally painted with his friend
Hendrik van de Sande Bakhuyzen, a prominent Romantic landscape painter.
Legacy and Influence
Schelfhout's death marked the end of the Romantic period in Holland, but he is considered a precursor of the
Hague School. His paintings are on display in several leading museums, including the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam and the Mauritshuis in The Hague. Schelfhout's use of watercolor in en plein air sketching greatly influenced Jongkind,
Jan Hendrik Weissenbruch, and
Willem Roelofs, who are recognized as masters of the technique.
Schelfhout's legacy continues to be celebrated through his artworks, which can be found on WahooArt.com. His influence on the development of Dutch landscape painting is undeniable, and his contributions to the art world remain an important part of art history.