CH.H.J. (CHARLES) LEICKERT

Biography

CH.H.J. (CHARLES) LEICKERT
1816 Brussels (Belgium) - 1907 Mainz (Germany)

Charles Henri Joseph Leickert was a Belgian-born painter of Dutch landscapes and a leading figure of the Dutch Romantic school. His father served as a chamberlain at the court of King William I in Brussels; when The Hague became the seat of government, the family relocated there. Leickert trained at the Hague Drawing Academy and in the studios of Bartholomeus van Hove and Wijnand Nuijen. Following Nuijen's death in 1839, he continued his studies under Andreas Schelfhout, whose influence proved decisive in shaping his development as a landscape painter and, in particular, his specialisation in winter scenes. He established himself as an independent painter in The Hague in 1840, was involved in the founding of Pulchri Studio in 1847, and became a member of Arti et Amicitiae in Amsterdam, the city to which he moved around 1849. In 1856, he was elected to the Royal Academy of Amsterdam.

A prolific and commercially successful artist, Leickert is celebrated above all for his ice scenes and winter landscapes, though he also painted summer river views, beach scenes, and cityscapes. His work is distinguished by its masterful handling of light and atmosphere, romanticising the evening sky in pale blues and pinks. He composed his paintings in the studio, drawing on sketches and studies made outdoors. In 1887, by then advanced in years, he moved to Mainz, where he continued to paint until he died in 1907. His works are held in collections including the Rijksmuseum, Teylers Museum, and the Landesmuseum Mainz.