Jan van de Venne

Who is Jan van de Venne?

Jan van de Venne, also Van de Vinnen and formally identified as the Dutch or Flemish painter Pseudo van de Venne, was a Flemish Baroque painter who specialized in "low-life" genre scenes of tooth-pullers, card-players and hurdy-gurdy musicians similar to the themes and styles of his contemporary Adriaen Brouwer. Little is known of his artist's career. He was possibly born before 1600 in Mechelen, and spent time in Brussels at the court. His paintings demonstrate harsh caricatures in a stronger light than Brouwer, which had a noticeable influence on the Dutch Bamboccianto Andries Both. Known works include the Hurdy-Gurdy Player with a Young Jester.

Although Jan van de Venne is sometimes identified as the brother of the Dutch "Golden Age" painter Adriaen van de Venne, Adriaen's brother died in Middelburg in 1625.