Jan de Vos was a Dutch painter, working in the city of Leiden. From H. U. Beck, ‘Künstler um Jan van Goyen’, Jan de Vos I, we find the town views of Cologne, Wesel, Noordwijk and Delft, with Wouter Knijff-like figures. For his extensive landscapes and views Jan de Vos I preferred horizontal pieces. Apart from town views he painted landscapes with bare, knotted trees in the foreground. ‘Jan de Vos’ manner of painting reminds one of Jan van Goyen.

In the Lorenz Spengler collection, Copenhagen, there is a drawing (beck 1711)

that appears to be a preliminary sketch for this painting. It is very rare to find a painting in this condition that is also signed and dated!

At least four painters named Jan or Johannes de Vos were active in Leiden during the second and third quarters of the 17th century. Abraham Bredius (1855-1946) therefore made a distinction between Jan de Vos I, II, III and IV in his work Künstler-Inventare. The first three come from the same family with many children.

Jan de Vos I married his wife Jannetje in 1613, who unfortunately died in 1631. Their marriage left two surviving sons, Johannes (Jan de Vos II) and Maerten, who in 1636 were 21 and 11 years old respectively, according to an orphanage certificate. In 1631 De Vos remarried Marytge Jacquemijns. According to baptismal records, he had thirteen children with her between 1632 and 1651, including two twins!

Jan de Vos I joined the Guild of Saint Luke in 1648, at the same time as his eldest son, Jan de Vos II. In 1663 and 1664 and again in 1668 and 1669 he was elected head of the guild on behalf of the draft painters. This distinction was a great honour and underscored the importance and profound impact Jan de Vos I exerted on his peers.