Jan Frans van Bloemen (1662–1749)

• Was a Flemish landscape painter.
• Born in Antwerp.
• Jan Frans van Bloemen was a younger brother of Pieter van Bloemen.
• Between 1681 and 1684, he was in his native Antwerp a pupil of Anton Goubau.
• He travelled to Paris around 1682, resided there for a few years.
• He then moved to Lyon where his brother Pieter van Bloemen was staying.
• Jan Frans and Pieter van Bloemen travelled on to Rome where in 1688 they were registered in the parish of Sant’Andrea delle Fratte.
• In 1690 a third painting brother, Norbert van Bloemen, joined them as well.
• Jan Frans remained in Rome for the rest of his life, except for a few trips to Naples, Sicily and Malta.
• The Dutch-born painter Caspar van Wittel, who lived in Rome since 1675, became the godfather of his first child.

• Van Bloemen received commissions for the painting of large vedute from prominent patrons such as the Queen of Spain Elizabeth Farnese, the Roman nobility and the Pope.

• He joined the Bentvueghels, where he took the nickname Orizzonte or Horizonti.

• This nickname referred to the distance he painted in his landscapes.

• He was unable to gain acceptance into the pre-eminent Roman painter's guild, the Accademia di San Luca, until he was over 70 years old.

• Among his pupils were Franz Ignaz Oefele, Gabrielle Ricciardelli, and Nicolò Bonito.

• He worked together with other painters who painted the figures in his landscapes such as Carlo Maratti, Placido Costanzi and Pompeo Batoni.

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