VEKEN, Nicolaas van der - b. 1637 Mechelen, d. 1709 Mechelen - WGA

VEKEN, Nicolaas van der

(b. 1637 Mechelen, d. 1709 Mechelen)

Flemish sculptor and painter. He was a pupil of Maximilaan Labbé (active c. 1629) and Lucas Faydherbe and became a master sculptor of the Mechelen Guild of St Luke in 1662. He worked almost entirely in wood and, unusually, coloured his own figures, which perhaps accounts for their exceptional synthesis and unity. He is best known for his confessionals, including those in churches St Catherine, St John, and Sts Peter and Paul in Mechelen. He made also charming polychrome wooden figures of saints in the Kempen district near Antwerp.

Confessional

Nicolaas van der Veken was the most noted among the pupils of Lucas Faydherbe. He primarily made his mark with “angel-like” figures. He excelled in carving confessionals, many of these works can be found in Mechelen where Van der Veken and his pupils made fourteen confessionals for the Church of St Peter and St Paul. The careful observer can discern the different styles. The two examples closest to the altar, shown in the photo, was carved by the master himself.

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Confessional

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Confessional

The Sint-Pieters-en-Pauluskerk (Saint Peter’s and Paul’s Church) is a former Jesuit Church in Mechelen. The church has no less than 14 confessionals. The Mechlin sculptor Nicolaas van der Veken and his pupils made the ensemble at the end of the seventeenth century.

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Confessional

The Sint-Pieters-en-Pauluskerk (Saint Peter’s and Paul’s Church) is a former Jesuit Church in Mechelen. The church has no less than 14 confessionals. The Mechlin sculptor Nicolaas van der Veken made the ensemble at the end of the seventeenth century.

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