Thérèse Schwartze (1851–1918) was one of the most successful and influential Dutch portrait painters of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In an era when the art world was primarily dominated by men, she managed to build an international reputation as the pre-eminent portraitist of the Dutch and European elite. Her work is characterized by a rare combination of technical virtuosity, commercial insight, and a glamorous style. Zandvoorts Museum has the painting ‘Woman from Zandvoort’ (1884) in its collection.
Schwartze was born in Amsterdam as the daughter of the painter Johan Georg Schwartze. Her father recognized her exceptional talent early on and gave her a rigorous, professional education. He prepared her for a career in which she could independently provide for her own livelihood. After her father’s death, she continued her studies in Munich and Paris. The period in Paris was particularly crucial; here she became acquainted with the work of great masters and developed a fluid, almost Impressionistic touch that would later make her famous.
Her clientele was impressive. Schwartze became the favorite painter of the Dutch Royal Family; she portrayed, among others, Queen Emma and the young Queen Wilhelmina. In addition, the wealthy bourgeoisie and international nobility found their way to her studio on Amsterdam’s Prinsengracht. She excelled not only in oils but was also a master of working with pastels. Her pastel portraits were revolutionary due to their freshness, use of color, and the speed with which she captured the essence of the sitter.
What set Schwartze apart from many of her contemporaries was her business instinct. She was one of the highest-paid artists of her time and was often referred to as a ‘society painter.’ Although critics sometimes labeled her work as too commercial or ‘un-Dutch’ and fashionable, her success was indisputable. She was the first woman asked by the prestigious Uffizi Gallery in Florence to donate a self-portrait for their famous collection of artist portraits.
In 1906, she married the journalist Anton van Duyl. After her death in 1918, she left behind not only an extensive oeuvre but also a lasting impact on the position of female artists in the Netherlands. In her memory, the Thérèse van Duyl-Schwartze Foundation was established, which promotes portraiture to this day. Thérèse Schwartze remains an icon of Dutch art history: a woman who used her brush to push the boundaries of her time and captured the world of the ‘beau monde’ with unprecedented elegance.
Around 1900, the Amsterdamse Joffers made a name for themselves as a close-knit group of female artists in the capital. Lizzy Ansingh, Coba Ritsema, and Marie van Regteren Altena belonged to a generation that—like their mentor Thérèse Schwartze—managed to secure a permanent place in the art world. Lizzy Ansingh is known as the leader of the Amsterdamse Joffers, likely due to the fact that she was the niece of Thérèse Schwartze, who enjoyed great fame at the time. Lizzy learned to paint from her aunt, with whom she lived on the Prinsengracht from the age of six, and subsequently attended the Academy from 1894 to 1897. She specialized in painting dolls.