Jacob Maris Quotes

Jacob Hendricus Maris was a Dutch painter, who with his brothers Willem and Matthijs belonged to what has come to be known as the Hague School of painters. He was considered to be the most important and influential Dutch landscape painter of the last quarter of the nineteenth century. His first teacher was painter J.A.B. Stroebel who taught him the art of painting from 1849 to 1852. Jacob Maris's most known works are the series of portraits of the royal House of Orange, he worked on these with his brother Matthijs Maris. He is also known for his portraits of landscapes like "Schip on the Scheveningen beach". Wikipedia  

✵ 25. August 1837 – 7. August 1899
Jacob Maris photo
Jacob Maris: 7   quotes 0   likes

Famous Jacob Maris Quotes

“Thijs knew everything by himself, he was a genius.”

translation from original Dutch, Fons Heijnsbroek, 2018
version in original Dutch / citaat van Jacob Maris, in het Nederlands: Thijs wist alles uit zich zelf, hij was een genie.
Quote of Jacob Maris about his brother Matthijs Maris, in a talk with G. H. Marius in: De Hollandsche Schilderkunst in de 19e eeuw, G. H. Marius; Martinus Nijhoff, s-Gravenhage, 1903/1920, p. 144
Variant: A painting is finished when one can see what it represents. (translation from original Dutch, Fons Heijnsbroek, 2018)

“When I am tired of long, straight roof lines, why should I not introduce a cupola, especially where the cloud formation requires its support?.. Why should I not build my own towns to suit myself?”

as cited in Landscape Painting and Modern Dutch Artists, E. B. Greenshields https://ia902605.us.archive.org/6/items/landscapepaintin00greeuoft/landscapepaintin00greeuoft.pdf; The Copp, Clark, Co. Limited, Toronto, 1906, p. 150
Jacob Maris painted many 'Dutch City' paintings, in which he combined different parts of the cities Amsterdam, Dordrecht, Delft and Rotterdam

“Almost all new French art [ French Impressionism ] has for me a flat, empty character without any distance and depth in colors. The paintings look like white sheets of paper with colors on it.”

Bijna alle nieuwe Fransche kunst [Impressionisme] heeft voor mij een plat, leeg karakter zonder afstand en diepte in kleur. De schilderijen lijken witte velletjes papier met kleurtjes erop.
Quote of Jacob Maris, in: 'Veerpont - Jacob Maris', Frank van der Velden https://www.rembrandtcirkel.nl/ul/cms/attachment/file/document/6/0/7/607/607/1/veerpont.pdf; Vereniging Rembrandt, Spring 2005, p. 24
he lived for several years in Paris, till 1871

“On the other hand, I am accused of not finishing my paintings, no matter how much time I spent to my airs. Well, 'finished' in the common sense of the word, they are certainly not! Finishing in that sense would drag the life out of it.”

translation from original Dutch, Fons Heijnsbroek, 2018
version in original Dutch / citaat van Jacob Maris, in het Nederlands: Daarentegen wordt mij verweten dat mijn schilderijen niet af zijn, hoe ik mijn lucht ook doorwerkt heb. Nu, 'af' in de gewone beteekenis van het woord is mijn werk zeker niet. Door in dien zin het af te maken, zou ik er het leven uithalen.
in Jacob Maris (1837-1899), M. van Heteren and others; as cited in 'Ik denk in mijn materie', in exhibition catalog of Teylers Museum / Museum Jan Cunen), Zwolle 2003, p. 76

“When I'm sitting in front of my easel again… I'm going to make things that no one would have expected of me. (translation from original Dutch, Fons Heijnsbroek, 2018)”

version in original Dutch / citaat van Jacob Maris, in het Nederlands: Als ik maar weêr voor den ezel zit.. ..ik ga dingen maken, die men niet van me verwacht zou hebben.
as cited by M. van Heteren e.a., Jacob Maris (1837-1899). Ik denk in mijn materie, (exp. cat. Haarlem, Teylers Museum / Oss, Museum Jan Cunen) Zwolle 2003, p. 144
a remark of Jacob, just before his death

“A painting is finished when one can see what it represents.”

translation from original Dutch, Fons Heijnsbroek, 2018
version in original Dutch / citaat van Jacob Maris, in het Nederlands: Een schilderij is af als men zien kan wat het voorstelt.
as cited by G.H. Marius, in 'Jacob Maris', in Het Schildersboek. Nederlandsche Schilders der Negentiende eeuw, Amsterdam 1898, p. 11

“When I'm sitting in front of my easel again.. .I'm going to make things that no one would have expected of me.”

translation from original Dutch, Fons Heijnsbroek, 2018
version in original Dutch / citaat van Jacob Maris, in het Nederlands: Als ik maar weêr voor den ezel zit.. ..ik ga dingen maken, die men niet van me verwacht zou hebben.
as cited by M. van Heteren e.a., Jacob Maris (1837-1899). Ik denk in mijn materie, (exp. cat. Haarlem, Teylers Museum / Oss, Museum Jan Cunen) Zwolle 2003, p. 144
a remark of Jacob, just before his death

Similar authors

Vincent Van Gogh photo
Vincent Van Gogh 238
Dutch post-Impressionist painter (1853-1890)
Eugène Delacroix photo
Eugène Delacroix 50
French painter
Paul Cézanne photo
Paul Cézanne 62
French painter
Mikhail Lermontov photo
Mikhail Lermontov 34
Russian writer, poet and painter
Claude Monet photo
Claude Monet 87
French impressionist painter
Paul Gauguin photo
Paul Gauguin 41
French Post-Impressionist artist
William Blake photo
William Blake 249
English Romantic poet and artist
John Ruskin photo
John Ruskin 133
English writer and art critic
Jozef Israëls photo
Jozef Israëls 33
Dutch painter
Multatuli photo
Multatuli 5
Dutch author