Jacob van der Ulft Temple of the Sibyl at Tivoli before 1689 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
Jacob van der Ulft Tomb of the Horatii 1688 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
Jacob van der Ulft Roman capriccio before 1689 drawing British Museum |
"Jacob van der Ulft (ca. 1621-1689), like Jan de Bisschop and Constantijn Huygens Jr, was a dilettante draughtsman. Van der Ulft was burgomaster of Gorkum from 1660 to 1679. Arnold Houbraken says that he painted 'Roman or Italian views . . . and did so in such a way that (although he had never been to Rome) persons who had travelled in Italy recognized the same at first glance'. This should not surprise anyone, continues Houbraken, because 'most of the remains of ancient Rome are easily come by in prints, or in sketches'. Van der Ulft's oeuvre includes paintings, gouaches and a great many drawings. In style and technique they are closely related to the drawings by Jan de Bisschop, although they are less lively and varied in execution. Van der Ulft made many copies after drawings by De Bisschop. De Bisschop's drawings, etchings and printing plates were sold at auction on 10 February 1677. It is possible that Van der Ulft acquired his drawings on this occasion and subsequently used them as models; however the two men could also have worked together earlier. It is interesting that in Van der Ulft's album of drawings there is a note reading 'from life', when he had never been to Italy. 'From life' here therefore refers not to the execution, but to the depiction: although the artist did not actually sit at the spot, drawing from nature, the pictures are faithful renditions of reality."
– Peter Schatborn, from the catalogue of a 2001 exhibition at the Rijksmuseum, published in English as Drawn to Warmth: 17th-century Dutch artists in Italy, translated by Lynne Richards
Jacob van der Ulft Landscape with Roman villa before 1689 drawing Teylers Museum, Haarlem |
Jacob van der Ulft Osteria in the Roman Campagna before 1689 drawing Teylers Museum, Haarlem |
Jacob van der Ulft Italian landscape before 1689 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
Jacob van der Ulft Italian landscape with ruins before 1689 drawing Teylers Museum, Haarlem |
Jacob van der Ulft Italian landscape with classical palace before 1689 drawing Teylers Museum, Haarlem |
Jacob van der Ulft Fragment of the ancient wall of Rome 1674 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
Jacob van der Ulft Italian harbor scene with classical ruin before 1689 drawing Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge |
Jacob van der Ulft Italian landscape, possibly the Monte Mario, Rome before 1659 drawing Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York |
Jacob van der Ulft Italian landscape with ruined building 1671 drawing Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge |
Jacob van der Ulft Roman classical building 1671 drawing British Museum |
Jacob van der Ulft Italian marketplace before 1689 oil on canvas Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |