Self Portrait

Thérèse Schwartze prints offer warm, lively portraits from Amsterdam around 1900. Schwartze was the most successful Dutch woman artist of the 19th century, sought after by Amsterdam's leading families and by the Dutch royal family. This collection gathers art prints of her portraits of children and families, her famous Amsterdam orphan girls in their red and black uniforms, character studies, self-portraits and pastel sketches.

About Thérèse Schwartze

Thérèse Schwartze was born in Amsterdam on 20 December 1851 into an artistic family. Her father, the painter Johann Georg Schwartze, gave her her first training and her first commissions, and she studied for a year at the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam.

Because art academies were not yet fully open to women, her father sent her for private lessons in Munich, where she studied with Gabriel von Max and Franz von Lenbach, and from 1879 in Paris with Jean-Jacques Henner. Back in Amsterdam she joined the artists' society Arti et Amicitiae, won a gold medal for a self-portrait at an international exhibition in 1889, and showed her work at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago.

She worked from her studio on the Prinsengracht, painting Amsterdam's merchants, philanthropists and their families, as well as Queen Wilhelmina. In 1896 she became the first woman appointed a knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau. In 1906 she married the newspaper editor Anton van Duyl. His death in July 1918 hit her hard, and she died in Amsterdam on 23 December 1918.

Style and Subjects

Schwartze painted almost nothing but portraits. Her style is fluent and confident, with strong character, broad brushwork and rich color, and her pastels were especially admired. She caught her sitters' personalities directly, whether a prosperous banker, a group of young sisters or a child with a dog.

Her paintings of girls from the Amsterdam civic orphanage, in their striking red and black uniforms, are among her most loved works. She also painted her family, especially her nieces Lizzy and Thérèse Ansingh, and made many quick studies of hands, heads and models.

Famous Works

• Young Italian Woman with the Dog Puck (1880), Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. An early portrait full of charm.
• Three Girls from the Amsterdam Orphanage (1885), Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Three orphan girls in their red and black uniforms, one of her best-known pictures.
• Portrait of Dr. P.J.H. Cuypers (1887), Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. The architect of the Rijksmuseum building.
• Self-Portrait (1888), Uffizi Gallery, Florence. Painted for the Uffizi's famous collection of artists' self-portraits.
• Portrait of Lizzy Ansingh (1902), Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Her niece, who also became a painter.
• The Inmates of My House (1915), Museum De Lakenhal, Leiden. Her extended family at home on the Prinsengracht.
• The Six Daughters of Charles Boissevain (1916), Amsterdam Museum. A lively group portrait of six sisters.

Decorating with Schwartze Prints

Schwartze's portraits of children and the orphan girls bring warmth and character to a bedroom, nursery or family room. Their strong reds and blacks look striking against white or soft gray walls, especially in simple black or gilt frames.

Her portraits of men and women suit a dining room, study or entrance hall with a classic feel, and her pastel studies of heads and hands make a delicate gallery wall for a reading corner.

FAQ

What kind of artist was Thérèse Schwartze?

Schwartze was a Dutch portrait painter, artistically and commercially the most successful Dutch woman artist of the 19th century. She painted Amsterdam's elite and members of the Dutch royal family.

What is Thérèse Schwartze's most famous painting?

Her Three Girls from the Amsterdam Orphanage (1885), in the Rijksmuseum, is one of her best-known works, along with her group portrait The Six Daughters of Charles Boissevain.

Where can I see Schwartze's original paintings?

The Rijksmuseum and the Amsterdam Museum hold many of her works. Others are in the Jewish Museum in Amsterdam, Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, Museum De Lakenhal in Leiden and the Uffizi in Florence.

How can you recognize a Thérèse Schwartze portrait?

Look for lively, natural faces, broad confident brushwork and rich color. Her pastels are soft and fresh, and her orphan girls are instantly recognizable by their red and black uniforms.

Why is Thérèse Schwartze important?

She built a hugely successful career at a time when women had limited access to art training. She was the first woman knighted in the Order of Orange-Nassau and was invited to contribute a self-portrait to the Uffizi Gallery.

Related Artists

• Jean-Jacques Henner — her teacher in Paris
• Franz von Lenbach — her teacher in Munich
• Gabriel von Max — another of her teachers in Munich
• Johann Georg Schwartze — her father and first teacher
• George Hendrik Breitner — Amsterdam painter whose wife she painted