| Called the chief topographical painter in Haarlem, Gerrit was probably trained by his elder brother Job. Together the two traveled to Germany around 1655. Following the Rhine, they visited Emmerich, Cologne, Bonn, Mannheim, and Heidelberg. In Heidelberg, Gerrit was briefly employed by the Elector Palatine and painted several views of the town, one of which is still in the museum there. Otherwise, Gerrit spent a rather uneventful life in Haarlem, sharing a house with his brother and devoting himself mainly to views of Haarlem, Amsterdam, and The Hague which he often repeated with slight variations. Occasionally, he turned to church interiors, which are regarded on a level with the work of other specialists of this subject including Hendrick van Vliet, Pieter Saenredam, and Emanuel de Witte. A notable example is in the National Gallery, London. Views of German cities and Italianate landscapes are also credited to him. In 1660 Gerrit is documented as a member of the Haarlem Painter's Guild. Saenredam's work must have influenced him. We know that he used Saenrcdam's drawing of the Haarlem Marketplace (published as an engraving in 1628) more than once. Drawings he made included topographical studies and figure studies used for staffage in paintings. Despite the rather repetitive nature of his work, Berkheyde achieved and maintained a fairly high standard in his paintings. His clear, precise vision apparently found a happy analogue in the architectonic quality of town views. From the 1670s on his style became increasingly refined, and his colors cooler. Dated works exist from 1668 to 1697. He often painted pairs of pictures, although these rarely remain together. In 1698, while taking a shortcut home, he drowned in the Browers vaart. |
