Eglon Van Der Neer - Life - Painter For Royalty

Painter For Royalty

In Brussels Van der Neer established a good relationship with the governor of the Spanish Netherlands, the Marquess of Castanaga. In 1687 Van der Neer was appointed court painter to the Spanish King Charles II of Spain. In 1689, when Carlos' first wife died, Van der Neer portrayed one of the new wedding candidates, Maria Anna of Neuburg. In 1695, Johann Wilhelm, Elector Palatine bought a painting by Van der Neer in Rotterdam, when traveling through the Netherlands. This painting must have pleased him, because shortly thereafter the Elector Palatine contacted Van der Neer directly and gave him commissions. In that same year Brussels was bombarded by French troops and Van der Neer started to look for another place to begin a new life. The Elector Palatine had been looking for a replacement ever since his last court painter Johannes Spilberg had died in 1690. Van der Neer's second wife had died in 1692, and he met Spilberg's daughter, herself a qualified painter, Adriana Spilberg. They married in 1697 and in 1698 Johann Wilhelm offered Van der Neer the position at his court as head painter. Van der Neer thus settled in Düsseldorf, and would remain here for these last years of his life.