GEERAERTS; JAN
Antwerp 1818 - 1890

The Ruins of the Trading Exchange in Antwerp.
Oil on wood.
80 x 106cm.
Notation: Signed and dated lower left: J. Geeraerts; 1873.
Frame/Pedestal: Framed.
Provenance:
Private ownership; Germany.

The painter Jan Geeraerts; known as a chronicler of Antwerp buildings; shows us here the frighteningly detailed ruins of the Antwerp stock exchange. The catastrophic collapse of this building; which is historically important and style-defining from several points of view; seems to have only just happened - smoke is still rising from the ruins - but is dated 1873; 15 years after its destruction.
In 1531; the original building of the "New Stock Exchange" was built as the centre of Antwerp's trading and money markets; a rectangular open space enclosed by a net-vaulted collonnade with a floor above; reminding us of medieval cloisters. This structure was a model for later stock exchanges; for example in London; Amsterdam or Rotterdam. The interior; which was open at the top; was only covered with a contemporary innovative glazed steel dome in 1853 after long discussions. Old engravings document this sensational extension by the engineer Charles Marcellis - which; however; fell victim to a fire after only five years. The subsequent replacement building in the historicising neo-Gothic style followed the old model in the 1870s.
The fact that the depiction of the ruin that Jan Geeraerts shows us goes beyond a purely documentary character is made clear by the monumental size of the painting on an expensive mahogany panel; which artists in the 19th century usually used for their most valuable works. The exciting view from the darkness of the collonades and the unusual steel girders between the old woods and stones also speak for the exceptional nature of the painting.

We are grateful to Leen Beyers and Vera De Boeck; Antwerp; for their kind support in cataloguing the present work.