Pieter Lastman(Amsterdam 1583 – 1633 Amsterdam)

How to cite
Bakker, Piet. “Pieter Lastman” (2017). In The Leiden Collection Catalogue, 2nd ed. Edited by Arthur K.
Wheelock Jr. New York, 2017–20. https://theleidencollection.com/artists/pieter-lastman/ (archived June2020).
A PDF of every version of this biography is available in this Online Catalogue's Archive, and the Archive ismanaged by a permanent URL. New versions are added only when a substantive change to the narrative
occurs.

Pieter Lastman had the misfortune of being eclipsed by his most gifted pupil, Rembrandt van Rijn (1606–69).
As a consequence, his work and reputation always stood in Rembrandt’s shadow. Lastman’s far-reachinginfluence is nevertheless visible in the early work of Rembrandt, who completed his training in a brief six
months of 1625.[1] Lastman had previously trained another famous Leiden painter in Amsterdam, Jan Lievens(1607–74). Lievens moved to Amsterdam as a ten-year-old in 1617 and stayed in Lastman’s studio
until 1621.[2]As Lievens and Rembrandt’s moves to Amsterdam suggest, Lastman was highly regarded in his day and hiswork was widely praised.[3] For instance, in 1618 the poet and diplomat Theodore Rodenburg (ca. 1574–1644)
described him—together with Jan Pynas (1581–1631)—as the leading exponent of a new generation of
Amsterdam history painters.[4] Most of them had visited Italy and in Rome had come under the influence ofAdam Elsheimer (1578–1610), who, entirely counter to the prevailing mannerist fashion, produced small-scale
history paintings with great attention to detail and realism. Until recently, this generation was known as the PreRembrandtists, an awkward appellation that does little justice to the singularity of this group of artists, which
also included Claes Moyaert (1592–1655), Jacob Pynas (1592/3–after 1650), and Jan Tengnagel(1584–1631), as well as François Venant (ca. 1591–1636), the husband of Lastman’s younger sister Agnietje(1595–1631).[5] Within this group, Pieter Lastman—with his choice of themes, narrative style, and theintroduction of subjects never before depicted in paintings (such as the story of David and Uriah, until then
only seen in prints)[6]—laid the foundation of Amsterdam history painting in the seventeenth century.[7]Pieter Lastman was born in Amsterdam in 1583. He was the fourth child of Pieter Segersz (1548–1603) andsecondhand-goods dealer Barber Jacobsdr (1549–1624), both devout Catholics. His elder brothers Jacob© 2020 The Leiden Collection

Pieter Lastman
Page 2 of 5

Pietersz (Hardingh) (1576–1618) and Seger Pietersz (Coninck) (1578–1650) were a sailmaker and agoldsmith, respectively. Lastman’s younger brother, Claes (1586–1625), was an engraver. His father was amessenger who traveled abroad on various occasions to deliver messages to William of Orange (1650–1702),
among others. In 1576 he became a courier for the Amsterdam Weeskamer (Orphan Chamber). He also
administered the property of orphans and managed the affairs of unmarried mothers and widows. After 1578,
the year in which Amsterdam finally joined the Dutch Revolt, he was dismissed from his post for refusing torelinquish his Catholic convictions. This may have precipitated his move to the Sint Jansstraat, where Pieter
was born soon thereafter.
According to Van Mander, Lastman was taught to paint by Gerrit Pietersz (1566–after 1612), brother of thefamous organist and composer Jan Pietersz Sweelinck (1562–1621).[8] Following his apprenticeship, which hemust have begun about 1597, Lastman went to Italy via Antwerp around 1603. There he discovered the workof Caravaggio (1571–1610) and Annibale Carracci (1560–1609), and “den berühmtenen Pieter Lastmann”(the famous Pieter Lastman) became one of Elsheimer’s companions.[9] Whether he met Peter Paul Rubens(1577–1640), who was also in Rome in 1605, is not known. A souvenir of Lastman’s stay in the Eternal City isa drawing of Palatine Hill bearing the inscription “Roma 1606.” A signed copy of Veronese’s Adoration of theShepherds in the Basilica di San Giovanni e Paolo in Venice indicates that he may also have visited that city.
What is certain is that he was back in Amsterdam at the beginning of March 1607, when he was present at thesale of painting equipment and paintings belonging to Gillis van Coninxloo (1544–1607).[10] He initially lived
with his mother. The house in the Sint Jansstraat, where his brother and sister also lived, was probably toosmall, because in 1608 the family moved to the Sint Anthoniesbreestraat, a new street where affluent citizens
were settling at the time. Lastman and his family moved into the house where Lievens and Rembrandt would
later receive lessons. The Zuiderkerk, for which Lastman designed a stained-glass window, was being built on
the opposite side of the street between 1603 and 1614. In February 1613, he was present when amaidservant and a seamstress made statements concerning the role of Jan Pynas in a tavern brawl. Twoyears later he himself was embroiled in a dispute with Hillegont Bredero, sister of the famous poet, possibly
concerning a broken promise of marriage. As a Caravaggio connoisseur, on 25 November 1619 he wasasked, along with Adriaen van Nieulandt (ca. 1587–1658), to verify the authenticity of a painting of thecrucifixion of Saint Andrew that was said to be by Caravaggio. More than ten years later, he was again called
upon to assess the quality of a copy by Louis Finson (ca. 1580–1617) of Caravaggio’s Madonna of theRosary.[11]Lastman’s only documented commission also dates from 1619. Through Pieter Isaacsz (1569–1625), court
painter to the Danish King Christian IV (1577–1648), Lastman was asked to paint three scenes from the life of
Christ for the king’s private chapel, to which Adriaen van Nieulandt (1587–1658) and Jan Pynas also
contributed.[12] In October 1623, he was present at the testimony given by the slandered Cornelia Brouwers,
wife of the portrait painter Cornelis van der Voort (1576–1624), who was a close friend of Lastman. Two years
later, Lastman bought three inexpensive tronies and some artist’s supplies.[13] Lastman’s mother was buriedin the Oude Kerk on 7 December 1624. She must have been a woman of means, because when her estate
was auctioned in April 1625 it proved to be worth around 23,000 guilders. Lastman drew up his will on 5 May© 2020 The Leiden Collection

Pieter Lastman
Page 3 of 51628; he left a considerable inheritance to his nephews and nieces or cousins and his possessions to hisbrother Seger and sister Agnietje. He became seriously ill the following year, and although he recovered, fromthen on his work never again achieved its former level. In 1632 he fell ill again and amended his will once
more. On 7 July he had an inventory made of all of his possessions which, in addition to his own paintings anddrawings, contained work by Claes Moyaert, Jacob Jordaens (1593–1678), Frans Badens (1571–1618),
Hendrick Cornelisz Vroom (ca. 1562–1640), and Hendrick Goltzius (1558–1617); the name of Rembrandt,
however, does not appear.[14] Lastman died in the spring of 1633 and was buried in the Oude Kerk on 4 April.

- Piet Bakker, 2017© 2020 The Leiden Collection

Pieter Lastman
Page 4 of 5Endnotes

1. See the biography of Rembrandt van Rijn in this catalogue.
2. See the biography of Jan Lievens in this catalogue.
3. In a poem in memory of Hendrick Goltzius (1558–1617) from 1620, the diplomat and painterBalthasar Gerbier (1592–1667) described Lastman as one of Amsterdam’s leading history
painters, as did the poet and statesman Constantijn Huygens (1596–1687) in 1629. PeterPaul Rubens (1577–1640) even regarded him as the greatest history painter of his age.
Around the same time, the writer Joost van den Vondel (1587–1679) cast doubt on
Huygens’s judgment, but could not decide who was the greatest between Rubens orLastman. However, in his praise of Thomas de Keyser’s (ca. 1596–1667) portrait of Lastman,painted at the end of the 1620s, he called Lastman “den Apelles onzer eeuwe” (the Apellesof our century). S.A.C. Dudok van Heel, “Pieter Lastman (1583–1633); een katholiek schilder
in de Sint Anthoniebreestraat,” in De Jonge Rembrandt onder tijdgenoten. Godsdienst en
schilderkunst in Leiden en Amsterdam (Nijmegen, 2006), 53–54. See also, Amy Golahny,“Pieter Lastman in the Literature: From Immortality to Oblivion,” Dutch Crossing 20 (1996):
87–115.
4. For this poem, see N. de Roever, “Drie Amsterdamsche schilders,” Oud Holland 3 (1885):
172.
5. Astrid Tümpel and Christian Tümpel, The Pre-Rembrandtists (Exh. cat. Sacramento, E.B.
Crocker Art Gallery) (Sacramento, 1974); Astrid Tümpel, “Pieter Lastman and the Other PreRembrandtists,” in Pieter Lastman: Leermeester van Rembrandt. The Man Who Taught
Rembrandt, ed. Peter Schatborn and Astrid Tümpel (Exh. cat. Amsterdam, Museum HetRembrandthuis) (Zwolle, 1991), 16–53.
6. Peter Schatborn and Astrid Tümpel, eds. Pieter Lastman: Leermeester van Rembrandt. The
Man Who Taught Rembrandt (Exh. cat. Amsterdam, Museum Het Rembrandthuis) (Zwolle,1991), 108–9, no. 12. See also the entry David Gives Uriah a Letter for Joab and the essay
Pieter Lastman’s “David and Uriah:” Storytelling and the Passions in this catalogue. [I don’tthink we can reference my essay here, since that would mean we would have to create arevised version and re-archive this biography. This reference doesn’t really qualify
unfortunately!]
7. Peter Schatborn and Astrid Tümpel, eds. Pieter Lastman: Leermeester van Rembrandt. The
Man Who Taught Rembrandt (Exh. cat. Amsterdam, Museum Het Rembrandthuis) (Zwolle,1991), 15.
8. Karel van Mander, Het Schilder-boeck (Haarlem, 1604), 294.
9. Joachim von Sandrart, Joachim von Sandrarts Academie der Bau-, Bild- und Mahlerey© 2020 The Leiden CollectionPowered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

Pieter Lastman
Page 5 of 5Künste von 1675: Lebem der berühmten Maler, Bildhauer und Baumeister, ed. Arthur R.
Peltzer (Nuremburg. 1675–79; reprint, Munich, 1925), 160, 163.
10. Sebastien A.C. Dudok van Heel, “Pieter Lastman (1583–1633): Een katholiek schilder in deSint Anthoniebreestraat,” in De Jonge Rembrandt onder tijdgenoten. Godsdienst en
schilderkunst in Leiden en Amsterdam (Nijmegen, 2006), 73.
11. Sebastien A.C. Dudok van Heel, “Pieter Lastman (1583–1633): Een katholiek schilder in deSint Anthoniebreestraat,” in De Jonge Rembrandt onder tijdgenoten. Godsdienst en
schilderkunst in Leiden en Amsterdam (Nijmegen, 2006), 84–85.
12. Sebastien A.C. Dudok van Heel, “Pieter Lastman (1583–1633): Een katholiek schilder in deSint Anthoniebreestraat,” in De Jonge Rembrandt onder tijdgenoten. Godsdienst en
schilderkunst in Leiden en Amsterdam (Nijmegen, 2006), 81.
13. Abraham Bredius, Künstler-Inventare: Urkunden zur Geschichte der holländischen Kunst desXVIten, XVIIten und XVIIIten Jahrhunderts (The Hague, 1917), 4: 1180–82.
14. For a transcription of the paintings in Pieter Lastman’s estate, see Sebastien A.C. Dudok vanHeel,“PieterLastman(1583–1633):

Eenkatholiek

schilderindeSint

Anthoniebreestraat,” in De Jonge Rembrandt onder tijdgenoten. Godsdienst en schilderkunst
in Leiden en Amsterdam (Nijmegen, 2006), 100–2.

Literature
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konstschilders

enschilderessen. Amsterdam, 1718–21; revised edition published in The Hague, 1753; reprintedin Amsterdam, 1980, 96–114.
Bredius, Abraham and N. De Roever. “Pieter Lastman en François Venant.” Oud Holland 4(1886): 1–23.
Freise, Kurt. Pieter Lastman, sein Leben und seine Kunst. Ein Beitrag zur Geschichte derholländischen Malerei im XVII. Jahrhundert. Leipzig, 1911.
Tümpel, Astrid and Peter Schatborn, eds. Pieter Lastman: Leermeester van Rembrandt. TheMan Who Taught Rembrandt. Exh. cat. Amsterdam, Museum Het Rembrandthuis. Zwolle,1991.
Dudok van Heel, Sebastien A.C. “Pieter Lastman (1583–1633): Een katholiek schilder in deSint Anthoniebreestraat.” In De Jonge Rembrandt onder tijdgenoten. Godsdienst en
schilderkunst in Leiden en Amsterdam. Nijmegen, 2006, 53–123.

© 2020 The Leiden Collection