Cornelis Saftleven was a Dutch Golden Age

Dutch Golden Age

The Golden Age was a period in Dutch history, roughly spanning the 17th century, in which Dutch trade, science, military and art were among the most acclaimed in the world. The first half is characterised by the Eighty Years' War till 1648...

 painter.

Biography

He was born into a family of artists, and learned to paint from his father Herman, along with his brothers Abraham and Herman Saftleven

Herman Saftleven

Herman Saftleven the Younger , was a Dutch painter of the Baroque period.-Biography:Born in Rotterdam, Saftleven lived most of his life in Utrecht. His brothers, Cornelis Saftleven and Abraham Saftleven were both painters...

 the Younger. He lived for a time in Utrecht

Utrecht (city)

Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...

 with his brother.

Saftleven's subject matter covered various subjects, including genre works, portraits, beach scenes, and biblical and mythological themes. Some consider his images of Hell

Hell

In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...

to be his most individual contribution to Dutch painting

Approximately two hundred of his oil paintings and five hundred of his drawings still survive.