Anthon van Rappard

(b Zeist, 14 May 1858; d Santpoort, 1 March 1892). Dutch painter, draughtsman and watercolourist. He was trained at the Amsterdam Rijksacademie, under Jean-L?on G?r?me in Paris, and at the Acad?mie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, where he became friendly with Vincent van Gogh. Initially, he painted mainly landscapes. Through van Gogh he got to know the work of socially committed English and French illustrators, which influenced him to produce a series of drawings at the institute for the blind in Utrecht, for example Blind Brushmaker (1890; Amsterdam, Rijksmus.; others in Utrecht, Cent. Mus., and Amsterdam, Rijksmus.). The sombre subject and the penetrating, sober execution are closely related to van Gogh's work of this period; however, unlike van Gogh, van Rappard was preoccupied with technique, stressing its importance in his writings on art in 1883-6. After encountering problems with the composition of Workers at the Ruimzicht Brickyard (1885; Utrecht, Cent. Mus.) he decided to return to the Amsterdam academy. This decision, connected with criticism of van Gogh's technique, brought about a split between the two painters. In van Rappard's later work, particularly the portraits and factory scenes, the thick impasto and colourfulness recall the work of such Amsterdam impressionists as George Hendrik Breitner. His most important works of that period are the drawings and sketches of the Pr?viniaire Cotton-Dyeing Plant in Haarlem (Utrecht, Cent. Mus.; Amsterdam, Rijksmus.).

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