Dirck Helmbreker

Dirck Helmbreker, Theodor Helmbreeker, or Teodoro Elembrech (1633–1696) was a Dutch Golden Age painter of Italianate landscapes.

Biography

According to Houbraken he lived from 1624 to 1694, but this has since been proven to be incorrect. He was born in Haarlem and became a pupil of Pieter de Grebber. Helmbreker arrived in Italy in 1654, eventually settling in Rome by the end of the decade. The Congregazione counted among its members many important artists who left their mark in Rome.

Works He was influenced by Sébastien Bourdon. Ultimately, these works found great success with Italian collectors. In 1695 he was commissioned to paint the main altar piece of the Church of St. Julian of the Flemings in Rome.

Houbraken described a painting from 1681 in the possession of Pieter Klok showing an Italian monastery with a group of poor people in the foreground with various handicaps being given soup from a large kettle ladled by a Franciscan friar. Helmbreker was very religious and donated often to the poor of Rome.