Johannes Van Londerseel

Place: Antwerp

Death: 1624

Biography:

Jan van Londerseel was a Flemish draughtsman, engraver, etcher and print maker. He was born in Antwerp between 1570 and 1575 and died in Rotterdam between 1624 and 1625. He was trained in Antwerp and was probably a pupil of Abraham de Bruyn. He married a niece of his master Abraham de Bruyn. He moved to Rotterdam around 1600 and lived in Delft in 1614. He was mainly active in Rotterdam where he is believed to have died before 7 January 1625. He had at least one son, Johannes van Londerseel the younger, who also became an engraver and by whom only one engraving is known. The majority of his work consists of landscapes, in which he shows a preference for picturesque details, such as gnarled trees. The engravings emphasise the contrast between black and white in the foreground and the backgrounds which are pale and lightly etched. He made a number of engravings after the architectural paintings of Hendrick Aerts. A remarkable piece is the Bird's Eye View of The Hague and Scheveningen from the North-East made in collaboration with Nicolaes de Clerck in 1614. He made engravings after the works of famous Flemish and Dutch painters of his time, including Gillis van Coninxloo, Hendrick Aerts, David Vinckboons, Maerten de Vos and Gillis d'Hondecoeter. Londerseel printed and published his own works. Claes Jansz. Visscher produced later editions of many of his engravings.