Abel Grimmer (1575-1619) - Interior of a Church

As he rarely signed his interior scenes, many of Abel Grimmer’s works were attributed to his contemporaries. This is the case with several of his church interiors, which were often attributed to Pieter Neefs the Elder (c. 1568/78–1659) or Hendrick van Steenwyck the Younger (1580–1649). In his book *Church Interiors 1580–1720: Architectural Painting of the Northern Schools*, Bernard G. Maillet corrects several of these attributions. 

The side aisle of the nave with its Gothic vaults and the tiled floor adorned with figures are rendered in the brown and yellow tones characteristic of the artist. His mastery of perspective is also evident in this succession of chapels. 

Unlike another version of this composition, which was sold at Sotheby’s in June 2021, this painting features no urban landscape – a motif he had nevertheless inherited from his apprenticeship with his father, Jacob Grimmer (1526–1590) – with the scene here unfolding entirely within the religious building. Whereas the Sotheby’s panel opened out onto the exterior, this one focuses on an enclosed space: the aisle of the nave.

The painter displays great finesse in his rendering of the architecture, with its ornate vaults, where triptychs can be seen on either side of the aisle, whilst the background opens onto a chapel where the altar can be glimpsed. Every detail, every figure, is treated with meticulous care. 

The figures display the modelling style so characteristic of Abel Grimmer, with those curved lines that give them a rounded silhouette so typical of the painter’s work.