18th century Belgian art Preliminary remarks. 18th century Belgian architecture

1. General overview of the development of Belgian architecture

In the 18th century, Belgian art gradually lost its dominant position. The country's architecture initially experienced a strong Austrian influence, later elements of French classicism were adopted.

The powerful flowering of art, which Belgium saw in the 17th century, does not suddenly stop, but gradually fades. In all areas of Belgian art, Rubens 'forms and colors, Rubens' spirit and temperament dominated this century. The forms of his imitators, however, became increasingly weak, the color more and more pale, the spirit more and more tired, and this “cooling down” lasts throughout most of the XVIII century. New life in Belgian art was breathed only by a turn to neo-classicism, which began here immediately after the middle of the century, as a protest against the weak Rubens stream, but manifested itself far from such energy as in some other countries. The hundreds of surviving names of Belgian architects, sculptors and painters should not divert our attention. Only the main lines of artistic evolution can be traced by us.

Under the mild, caring Austrian dominion, Belgian life in the 18th century was easy and pleasant. But despite the aspirations of Maria Theresa and her shtatgalter, Karl Lorraine, who followed in this Albert von Sachsen-Teschen, husband of the governor of Mary Christina, failed to fill the Belgian art of independent new content.

The church architecture almost completely stopped, and as for secular architecture, it only repeated, at a certain distance and Austrian color, the experiences of the styles of Louis XV and Louis XVI. "It was, says Himans, the style of Louis XV without grace, the style of Louis XVI without lightness."

Of the late workshop houses at the Brewers' House in Brussels (1752), with windows decorated with openwork carvings between the Tuscan columns of the lower floor, with folded garlands of upper floors and crowned with an equestrian statue of Carl of Lorraine, still retains something of the power of the Rubensian century. But the "House of the Swan" (1720) had already moved to weaker, timid forms, and the "House of Brewers" in Leuven (1740) was already on the basis of the dryness inspired by the Vienna.

The Flemish-Austrian style is also shown by Jan Pieter van Bayrerscheidt the Younger (1699–1768) built by the rather boring patrician palace on the Place de Meir in Antwerp (1745), which now serves as a royal palace, the Antwerp dwellings of the house of the architect Wilhelm Ignaz Kerriks junior (1682–17171717171717 rebuilt from the old Nassau Palace, the palace of the State Palace in Brussels (1760), the builder of which is called a certain Viennese architect, whose other buildings are unknown. Only parts of this building are preserved in the halls of the Cabinet of Prints of the Royal Library.

French classicism planted in Belgium by French architect Guimar, whose biography is unknown. He owns an elegant breakdown of the Plas Royal (1772), Rue Royal and Royal Park (1776) in Brussels, as well as the Saint-Jacques-sur-Caudanbier classical church (1776–1785), with its Corinthian portico, a copper-covered bell tower, and an elegant House of estates "on the Rue de la Lua (1779–1783), in which the Belgian legislative chambers now sit. Employees of Guimarre are the crown of Zinner and the Dutchman Louis Joseph Montway (died in Vienna in 1800). Montwei is also supposed to have executed the strictly pseudo-classical castle of Laken (1782–1784), but only according to a draft written by the customer himself, Prince Albert von Sachsen-Teschen. All this is very satisfactory, even impressive buildings, but without signs of a national Belgian character.