Norbert van Bloemen

Norbert van Bloemen, called Cefalus or Cephalos (1670, Antwerp – 1746, Amsterdam), was a Flemish painter and draughtsman who worked mainly in the Papal States and the Dutch Republic. He is known for his Italianizing landscapes and genre scenes reminiscent of the style of the low-life paintings of the Bamboccianti. He also painted portraits and some history paintings.

Life Norbert van Bloemen was born in Antwerp as the younger brother of Pieter and Jan Frans. These two older brothers were painters who would go on to have successful careers in Italy and Antwerp. Norbert was trained by his older brother Pieter but may also have had other teachers since Pieter left Antwerp for Lyon in 1674. In Lyon Pieter was later joined by his brother Jan Frans. Pieter and Jan Frans later travelled on to Rome where in 1688 they were registered in the parish of Sant'Andrea delle Fratte. In 1690, Norbert joined his two brothers in Rome. It is not certain whether he lived with his brothers in Sant'Andrea delle Fratte.

He was one of the teachers of Cornelis Ploos van Amstel in Amsterdam. He also made occasional history paintings, including for the clandestine Catholic churches in Holland and a number of portraits such as that of Portrait of Jan Pietersz Zomer, an art dealer in Amsterdam (Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam).

Norbert never seems to have been able to achieve the same level of success as his prolific brothers Pieter and Jan Frans whose works were highly prized during their lifetime and can now be found in prestigious international collections. It is believed he left Rome and Italy because of a lack of success in those cities.