BEURS, Willem, Die Grosse Welt Ins Klein abgemahlet, Oder Ein kurtzer Unterricht von allen Gemaehlden In der Welt: In sechs Büchern abgefasset. Worinnen die Haupt-Farben Nebst ihren unterschiedlichen Vermischungen und derer Gebrauch abgehandelt werden, Amsterdam, Johannes en Gillis Janssonius van Waesberge, 1693.

Sächsische Landesbibliothek - Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek (SLUB) Dresden Art.plast.2289 Images hors-texte
De groote waereld in 't kleen geschildert was published in 1692 with Johannes and Gilles Janssonius van Waesberge in Amsterdam. Coincidentally, the publishers were the brothers-in-law of Willem Goeree, the author of a number of treatises on art.[3] In fact, because of its rather practical approach, Beurs’ treatise resembles Goeree’s Verlichtery-konst (1st ed. 1668), which in turn was based on Geerard TerBrugghen’s Verlichtery kunst-boeck (1st ed. 1616). However, Beurs distinguished himself by showing a keen interest in recent scientific studies by Robert Boyle and Christiaan Huygens, amongst others, which he mentions in the introduction (and the knowledge of which echoes through the rest of the treatise).


De groote waereld is divided into six books, which in turn are divided into short chapters. In the first book, Beurs treats the main colours, discussing their preparation and use for painting, as well as different supports and tools. In each of the other five books, Beurs explains which (mix of) colours to use for different objects and elements of a painting and how to apply them. Despite the level of detail of the provided information, Beurs clearly expects the reader to have basic practical knowledge. The book has no illustrations and no art works are cited as examples.


Already in 1693, a German translation of Beurs’ treatise was published by the same publishing house in Amsterdam.[4] The text was translated by an anonymous translator and the content literally follows the Dutch edition, although the dedication is missing. No other translations or editions were published. At this point, it is impossible to establish how well the editio princeps and the German translation were received.


We would like to express our gratitude to the project team 'Recipes and Realities, An analysis of texture rendering in still-life painting and the pictorial procedures of Willem Beurs' (NICAS & Utrecht University), under supervision of Jeroen Stumpel, for allowing us to use their English translation of the treatise for the translations of the citations, before its publication.[5] 


Marije Osnabrugge
 
[1] HOUBRAKEN, 1718-1721, book 3, p. 354-356.
[2] Sophia Holt, Cornelia van Marlen, Aleyda Greven, and Anna Cornelia Holt. See DE JONG, 1998.
[3] See Goeree’s publications elsewhere in this database. 
[4] For more on the translation, see: OSNABRUGGE, forthcoming 2018.
[5] The translation was prepared by Myra Scholz. The project team will publish an annotated English translation (BEURS, en préparation). Within the context of this project, Lisa Wiersma is preparing a dissertation on Willem Beurs and his book, under supervision of prof.dr. Jeroen Stumpel.
in-8 german

Dedication
An den Leser

OSNABRUGGE, Marije, « German Translations of Dutch Art Literature: Goeree, Beurs and De Lairesse », dans VAN LEEUWEN, Rieke (éd.), La Haye, RKD, forthcoming 2018 [En ligne : http://www.rkdmonographs.nl/ consulté le 31/12/2017].

VON FRIMMEL, Theodor, « Auszüge aus Willem Beurs: De groote Waereld in't Kleen geschildert », Beilage der Blätter für Gemäldekunde, 1/1, 1905, p. 5-14.

DE JONG, Lamberthe, « "Mijn vermaak en Kroone": Schilderessen in het Vrouwenhuis in Zwolle », dans KLOEK, Els, PETERS-SENGERS, Catherine et TOBÉ, E. (éd.), Vrouwen en kunst in de Republiek, een overzicht, Hilversum, Verloren, 1998, p. 55-64.

WALLERT, Arie, « De groote waereld in ’t kleen geschildert (the Big World Painted Small) : a Dutch 17th-Century Treatise on Oil Painting Technique », dans EYB-GREEN, Sigrid et TOWNSEND, Joyce (éd.), The Artist's Process: Technology and Interpretation, Actes du colloque de Vienne, London, Archetype Publications Ltd, 2012, p. 130-137.

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