Barthel Bruyn the Elder

German, 1493–1555

BiographyBarthel (Bartholomaeus) Bruyn the Elder, the dominant painter in Cologne in the first half of the sixteenth century, was born in 1493 in the region of the Lower Rhine. He trained in the workshop of Jan Joest von Calcar (1455/60-1519) along with the Netherlandish painter Joos van Cleve (ca. 1485-1540/1), who had a decisive influence on his art. Bruyn arrived in Cologne in 1512 and remained in that city for the rest of his life, serving on various municipal councils between 1518 and 1553. He was married sometime between 1515 and 1520, and had two sons, both of whom became artists. Bruyn's death was recorded in the parish church of St. Alban in Cologne on 2 April 1555.

No signed paintings by the artist are known, but his oeuvre has been reconstructed around two documented altarpieces. Several dated works permit the establishment of a general chronology. Earlier paintings (to the mid-1520s) show the influence of Jan Joest and especially Joos van Cleve. Beginning in the late 1520s Bruyn's work reflects the Netherlandish "Romanism" of Jan van Scorel (1495-1562) and Maerten van Heemskerck. In addition to painting large altarpieces and private devotional works, Bruyn was a gifted and prolific portraitist.