Jan Brueghel was better known as Jan Brueghel the Elder and he was nicknamed “Velvet” Brueghel. He was a Flemish painter, who was the second son of Pieter Brueghel the Elder and father of Jan Brueghel the Younger. He was nicknamed “Velvet” Brueghel because of his habit of wearing velvet.
He was an artist of big sensitivity that painted flowers and landscapes with the typical delicacy of a miniaturist, which often were encouraged with scenes of gender, allegories (The elements, The seasons), and mythological and biblical scenes. His first steps in painting were together with his grandmother Maria Bessemers, who was a famous miniaturist; and later, he was admitted in the Pieter Goetkint’s studio.
Following the example of the most important Flemish painters of that period, Jan Brueghel went to Italy, where he was under the protection of the cardinal Federico Borromeo. When he went back to Flanders, he fixed his residence in Antwerp and he became friends with Rubens, whom often he collaborated with, as well as with F. Francken II, H. Van Balem, H. de Clerck and J. de Momper.
It is difficult to distinguish his abundant work from his imitator’s, which were numerous. Some signs to recognize his works are the clear range of color and the meticulous drawing. Jan Brueghel’s works are exhibited in the main museums, especially in El Prado (Madrid), the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana (Milan) and in the Louvre Museum (Paris).
