Dirk Meerkerk
Dirk Meerkerk (1620 in Gouda – 1660 in Gouda), was a Dutch Golden Age painter.
According to Houbraken he was born in the former brewery "Van den Passer" in the Keizerstraat, and travelled to Rome.[1] He lived in Rome with the Bishop of Nantes, Gabriel de Beauvau Rivau, and returned to Gouda only to drown soon after when he fell into a canal on the way back from a funeral.[1] He was mentioned in Ignatius Walvis "Beschrijvinge van Gouda" as an able painter who travelled to Rome "by his art", meaning he paid his way with his talents.[2]
Unfortunately, no known works have survived.
References
- ^ a b (in Dutch) Dirk Meerkerk Biography in De groote schouburgh der Nederlantsche konstschilders en schilderessen (1718) by Arnold Houbraken, courtesy of the Digital library for Dutch literature
- ^ Beschryving der stad Gouda, by Ignatius Walvis, in Google books, 1714, p 337
