Juan van der Hamen y Léon

Juan van der Hamen y Léon (baptised on April 8th 1596, died on 28th march 1631 in Madrid) was a Spanish painter of the Barocco period whose exploits occurred during the time of the Siglo de Oro. His family was of flemmish background, both he and his father serving in the flemmish division of archers of the Spanish king. IN 1615 he finished his formal artistic education and started working on his own. Still life was since the beginning of his career his financial mainstay. In 1619 he was called up to work at the Spanish court where he sought reconigtion as a portrait painter in order to achieve the role of royal painter, a position he successfully applied for in 1627. He untimely passed away at the age of 35. At this time, he was dedicating himself wholly to different sorts of paintings, eventually turning to painting landscapes. Van der Hamen y Léon is widely known for his still life works, before which the rest of his oeuvre fades to insignificance. However, back in his time he also enjoyed much popularity for his portraits and his historical paintings garnered much praise. In the 1620's he contributed decisively for still life as a form of art in the Spanish court, furthering its popularity. His portraits and historical paintings have increasingly become the subject of research since the mid 20th century.