UMD Theses and Dissertations

Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/3

New submissions to the thesis/dissertation collections are added automatically as they are received from the Graduate School. Currently, the Graduate School deposits all theses and dissertations from a given semester after the official graduation date. This means that there may be up to a 4 month delay in the appearance of a given thesis/dissertation in DRUM.

More information is available at Theses and Dissertations at University of Maryland Libraries.

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2012 - 20182

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Subject: search.filters.subject.Golden Age

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    Adapting to the Market: Gabriel Metsu in Amsterdam
    (2018) Lee, Sophia; Wheelock, Jr., Arthur K.; Art History and Archaeology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    This dissertation examines the impact that the vicissitudes of the political and economic environment of the mid-seventeenth century Dutch Republic had on the stylistic and thematic character of paintings that Gabriel Metsu (1629-1667) executed after he moved from Leiden to Amsterdam in 1654. In the early 1650s the Dutch Republic faced a multitude of difficulties. Shortly after its independence from Spain in 1648, the sudden death of Stadholder Willem II of Orange in 1650, the First Anglo-Dutch War (1652-1654), and a plague outbreak in the mid-1650s, the country was in a perilous state. The political and economic uncertainties facing the country had a direct impact on art markets. This study examines how Metsu adapted his paintings to succeed in this changing environment. After he moved to Amsterdam, which was a much larger market than Leiden, he adopted Gerrit Dou’s (1613-1675) subject matter and Jan Baptist Weenix’s (1621-1659) fluid brushwork to create a new genre style. He also looked carefully at other contemporary genre painters, including Gerard ter Borch (1617-1681), Johannes Vermeer (1632-1675), and Pieter de Hooch (1629-1684), to broaden his thematic and compositional ideas. Metsu also applied his unique sense of humour, evident in expressive facial expressions and body language, to enliven his paintings and invite his viewers’ engagement. By utilizing personal connections to expand his clientele to include wealthy patrons, as well as by diversifying the sizes and subjects of his paintings, Metsu succeeded in broadening his reach to include both wealthy patrons and a broad base in the Amsterdam art market.
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    Amalia van Solms and the Formation of the Stadhouder's Art Collection, 1625-1675
    (2012) Treanor, Virginia Clare; Wheelock, Jr., Arthur K.; Art History and Archaeology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    This dissertation examines the role of Amalia van Solms (1602-1675), wife of Frederik Hendrik, Prince of Orange and Stadhouder of the United Provinces of the Netherlands (1584-1647), in the formation of the couple's art collection. Amalia and Frederik Hendrik's collection of fine and decorative arts was modeled after foreign, royal courts and they cultivated it to rival those of other great European treasure houses. While some scholars have recognized isolated instances of Amalia's involvement with artistic projects at the Stadhouder's court, this dissertation presents a more comprehensive account of these activities by highlighing specific examples of Amalia's patronage and collecting practices. Through an examination of gifts of art, portraits of Amalia and her porcelain collection, this study considers the ways in which Amalia contributed to the formation of the Stadhouder's art collection. This dissertation seeks to provide a greater knowledge not only of Amalia's activities as a patron and collector, but also a more throrough understanding of the genesis and function of the collection as a whole, which reflected the power and glory of the House of Orange during the Dutch Golden Age.