Maria Verelst facts for kids
Maria Verelst (born in 1680, died in 1744) was an English painter who lived in the 1700s. She was known for her detailed portraits and tiny miniature paintings.
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Maria Verelst's Life Story
Maria Verelst was born in Vienna, a city in Austria. When she was just three years old, her family moved to London, England. Her father, Harman Verelst, was a Dutch painter. He taught Maria and her brothers, Simon and Cornelis, how to paint.
Maria was very smart and learned many languages, including Dutch and Latin. She even became a language teacher! A story tells that she once corrected some Dutch men speaking in a London theatre. When they switched to Italian, she corrected them again. They then tried Latin, thinking she wouldn't understand, but she surprised them once more! She told them that women could learn languages, even if they weren't allowed in public meetings. The men were so impressed that they visited her the next day with gifts and asked her to paint their portraits.
Her Painting Career
Sadly, Maria's very first paintings are not around anymore. In the 1720s, she worked with other famous painters like William Aikman and Charles Jervas. Later, her painting style became more like that of Thomas Hudson.
Maria often painted women in informal clothes with natural landscapes in the background. Her paintings showed strong shapes, but the way she painted clothes was simple and elegant. She also worked with Sir James Thornhill around the same time. Some large wall paintings (murals) in England are believed to be a team effort between Maria and Sir James.
Some of Her Artworks
Maria Verelst created many beautiful paintings. Some of her known works include:
- Portrait of Lady Smythe, three-quarter-length
- Portrait of a lady, half-length, in a silver white gown
- Nature morte aux huitres et aux crabs (Still life with oysters and crabs)
- Portrait of Duke of Marlborough
- Portrait of a woman, Lady Middleton
- Portrait of a lady in a yellow dress seated, with a wooded landscape beyond
- Portrait of a Lady with a Country Estate in the Distance
- Duke of Chandos in the dressing room
Verelst Family Tree
| Pieter Hermansz Verelst 1618–1678 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Herman Verelst 1641–1702 | Simon Pietersz Verelst 1644–1721? | John Verelst 1648–1734 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cornelis Verelst 1667?–1734 | Maria Verelst 1680–1744 | William Verelst 1704–1752 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Her Later Years
Maria Verelst passed away in London in 1744. She lived almost 40 years longer than her father and 20 years longer than her uncle. Both her father and uncle were also very skilled painters and taught her a lot when she was young.
