Blommers, Bernardus Johannes

Johannes Blommers studied at the Fine Art Academy of The Hague in 1863. It was here that he became friends with Willem Maris, with whom he made a trip along the Rhine valley in 1865. Upon his return to Holland, he submitted a work to the Living Masters exhibition in Amsterdam. The painting was hung next to work of Jozef Israels. However, it was only later that year that the two artists met on the beach in Schevingen where they both were working. This became the basis of a life long friendship.

The simple life of the fishermen and farmers from Katwijk on the Sea and Scheveningen were the focal point of the paintings and watercolors of Blommers. The inspiration for Blommers was in fact Jozef Israels, but, unlike Israels, Blommers depicted his subjects in a way that avoided their daily hardships. Instead, he chose to focus on the noble joy in the lives of his subjects. During his life, Blommers received a number of awards and medals, and was popular with collectors in North America and England. In fact, he was one of the most collected artists of The Hague School.