Dutch expressionist painter,. He came from a strong Lutheran family background and, like John Wesley, was influenced by The Imitation of Christ. While in London in 1876 he was employed as a church worker and Sunday School teacher by the Rev. Thomas S. Jones, Congregational minister at Isleworth and Turnham Green, and was also given preaching appointments at Kew Road and Petersham churches in the Richmond (Surrey) WM Circuit. His sketch of Petersham chapel is now in the Courtauld Institute. Returning home in December 1876, he failed to become a minister in the Dutch Reformed Church and turned to painting. His compassion for the poor and his ideal of a community of artists may have owed something to the example of John Wesley and the Methodist class meeting.

Entry written by: JAV
Category: Person
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