Artwork
The regents of the Nieuwe Zijds institute for the outdoor relief of the poor, Amsterdam, ca 1650
The regents of the Nieuwe Zijds institute for the outdoor relief of the poor, Amsterdam, ca 1650 is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Jacob Adriaensz Backer. It dates from 1650 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The composition specifically portrays the male administrators who managed the charity's operations, with Isaac Commelin identified as one of the sitters.
This large-scale oil painting functions as a regents group portrait, depicting the governing board of the Nieuwe Zijds institute responsible for outdoor poor relief in Amsterdam. The composition specifically portrays the male administrators who managed the charity's operations, with Isaac Commelin identified as one of the sitters. Created in 1650, the work serves as an official record of the institution's leadership during the mid-seventeenth century.
The imagery emphasizes the civic duty and collective authority of these regents, a common theme in Dutch Golden Age art where such groups were commissioned to document their stewardship of public welfare. By gathering the board members together on canvas, the painting visually reinforces their shared responsibility for the distribution of aid to the city's impoverished residents outside the institution's walls.
Technique & Style
The work is an oil painting executed on canvas, typical of Dutch portraiture of the mid-17th century. The surface bears the handling and condition noted in the Rijksmuseum records, where it remains part of the museum's collection and is displayed in its original frame. Formal stylistic qualities include a sober composition, restrained palette, and careful rendering of individual likenesses within the group, reflecting the conventions of regent portraiture.
History & Provenance
The painting was commissioned by the regents of the Nieuwe Zijds institute for the outdoor relief of the poor in Amsterdam and was created around 1650. Jacob Adriaensz Backer executed the work as an oil painting on canvas, depicting Isaac Commelin, and it was produced in the same year recorded in its inception details. The artwork entered the collection of the Rijksmuseum and the Amsterdam Museum, where it remains today.
The painting is held jointly by the Rijksmuseum and the Amsterdam Museum, with a location associated with the Prinsengracht 235 address in Amsterdam. It is also linked to the collection of the Nieuwezijds Huiszittenhuis. The canvas measures 272 cm in height by 312 cm in width.
No specific inventory or accession number is recorded in the available sources, and no exhibition history is documented.
Context
The painting was created around 1650 by Jacob Adriaensz Backer as an oil on canvas group portrait depicting the regents of the Nieuwe Zijds institute for the outdoor relief of the poor in Amsterdam. It measures 272 cm by 312 cm and is part of the collections of the Rijksmuseum and the Amsterdam Museum. The work is recognized as a genre example of a regents group portrait and portrays Isaac Commelin among the figures.
Scholarship emphasizes its significance within the trajectory of Dutch group portraiture, reflecting evolving civic identity and charitable institutions in 17th-century Amsterdam. Its composition and iconography have been analyzed in relation to contemporary religious and municipal contexts, situating it within Backer's broader output of single and group portraits. The piece contributes to understanding the development of collective representation in Dutch Golden Age art.
The work's placement in museum collections underscores its historical and artistic importance, though specific exhibition histories are not detailed in the available sources.
Legacy
The painting was instrumental in shaping the tradition of Dutch regent group portraits, influencing later artists to portray civic leadership with similar compositional rigor and group dynamics. Its depiction of civic responsibility and charitable oversight contributed to the genre's evolution in 17th-century Amsterdam, remaining a reference point for subsequent civic portraiture.
The work's composition and thematic focus informed later interpretations of municipal governance in art, reinforcing its lasting impact on Dutch cultural memory.
Overview
Created circa 1650 by Jacob Adriaensz Backer, this oil-on-canvas work records a formal gathering of the regents who administered the Nieuwe Zijds institute, an organization responsible for outdoor relief to the poor in Amsterdam. The composition presents several men in coordinated black attire, white collars and cuffs, seated around a table in a modest interior.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Jacob Adriaensz Backer (1608 – 27 August 1651) was a Dutch Golden Age painter. He produced about 140 paintings in twenty years, including portraits, religious subjects, and mythological paintings. In his style, he was…
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