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(1) Ferdinand De Braekeleer, the elder
(b Antwerp, 12 Feb 1792; d Antwerp, 16 May 1883). The son of poor parents, he was first accepted by Mathieu Van Brée’s art school for orphans and later by the Antwerp Academie. He gained several prizes there in 1809 and 1811, and he distinguished himself in the Paris Salon of 1813 with Aeneas Carrying Anchises (untraced). De Braekeleer’s avowed aim on becoming a painter was to find the most lucrative field, and in his early years he tried his hand at most genres, including history painting, religious pictures (St Sebastian, 1818; Wynegen, Church of Notre-Dame) and popular scenes. It was not until 1819 (an earlier award having been withdrawn) that he was able to go to Italy after winning the Antwerp Prix de Rome with Tobias Restoring his Father’s Sight (untraced). Van Brée joined him in Rome, where he furthered his training, and together they visited Naples, Ancona, Florence, Bologna and Venice. Captivated by Rome and the surrounding countryside, De Braekeleer filled a sketchbook (Brussels, Bib. Royale Albert 1er, Cab. Est.) with landscapes and picturesque views of the city, drawn with considerable virtuosity in black chalk. He also produced paintings such as Peasant Woman from Frascati (1822) and Neptune’s Grotto in Tivoli (1822; both untraced).
Part of the De Braekeleer family
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