![]() In 1609 he received a commission for an altarpiece from the prior of the Dominicans or Predikheren in the then still predominantly catholic city of ‘s-Hertogenbosch. During his trial he merely states that he is a painter by profession and has practised his art from an early age. Nothing has so far been discovered about Torrentius’ artistic training. In the next post Torrentius’ art, his possible use of the c amera obscura, “magic paint” and more: here I will discuss the facts about his extraordinary life and conviction. But contemporary accounts, too, must be interpreted with caution. Snoek, 2007), inventarising the early 17th century documents on the movement in the Dutch Republic, has not been able to provide conclusive proof. The notion that Torrentius may have been a Rosicrucian has led some recent authors to interpret historical facts in this light. Only one has survived but it was not rediscovered until the previous century. ![]() His paintings were believed to have been wilfully destroyed at the time of his conviction. ![]() His eccentricity and incaution led to imprisonment, cruel torture and even condemnation to the stake. Moreover, his paintings, according to his own statements, were painted “with other paints than all other painters”, indeed, he claimed that his art was sheer magic: “it is not me who paints …”. Johannes Torrentius (1589-1644) was a painter with a reputation as a “seducer of burghers, a deceiver of the people, a plague on the youth, a violator of women, a squanderer of his own and other’s money”. ![]()
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