Johannes Rach
Encyclopedia
Johannes Rach was a Danish
painter and draughtsman whose works from Copenhagen
and Indonesia
are a valuable source of architectural and cultural historic knowledge. He began his artistic career painting topographical views for the royal court in Copenhagen. Later he traveled to the Dutch East Indies
, by way of Saint Petersburg
and the Netherlands
, where he settled in Batavia
(present day Jakarta), and had a military career in the Royal Dutch East Indies Army. At the same time he continued to pursue his artistic work with considerable commercial success. He set up a large studio with local employees who worked in his style, and produced depictions of the city and surrounding countryside for the local elite.
to Christoffer Rach, an innkeeper and alcohol distiller, and Anne Kirstine (Christine) Christensdotter. After training with Danish court painter P. Wickman from 1736 to 1742, Rach worked for the Danish court for a few years, painting topographical pictures in a close collaboration with J. G. Hertzog. Some of their works were based on contemporary copperplate engravings from Lauritz de Thurah
's architectural works Den Danske Vitruvius
(1746–48) and Hafnia Hodierna
(1748), which provided detailed and profusely illustrated catalogues of prominent buildings in Copenhagen and the surrounding countryside. Rach has signed some of his Danish works but many of them are signed by him and Eegberg jointly. The character and extent of their collaboration remains uncertain.
, from 1747 to 1750 working as a painter and draughtsman at Empress Elizabeth of Russia's court in Saint Petersburg
. Apart from topographical drawings and perspectives he also painted still life. In 1750, or shortly thereafter, Rach moved to the Netherlands
where he settled as a painter in Harlem. In April 1756 he married Maria Wilhelmina Valenzijn and the following year his daughter, Christina Maria, was born.
Probably due to lack of success as a painter, Rach turned to a military career in 1762 when he left for Asia to serve as gunner aboard one of the ships of the Dutch East India Company
, leaving his wife and daughter behind in Amsterdam
. The first leg of the voyage took him to Cape Town
by way of Madeira
and Saint Helena
. He made some topographical drawings, among others, along the way.
in 1779, while at the same time making progress as an artist of topographical views. Among his customers were members of the local elite, who ordered drawing of their country houses outside the city. Other customers ordered street scenes and depictions of the local countryside.
Rach was a man of considerable commercial skill and he used his position in society to sell large quantities of his drawings. To cope with demand, Rach recruited assistants, most often unknown, who worked in his style and are probably responsible for most of the drawings from Java
signed to him. Besides Batavia and its surroundings, his drawings depict Buitenzorg
, the north Javanese coastal cities, some cities on Sri Lanka
and other settlements of the Dutch East Asia Company in Asia.
Rach lived in a house at the Roea Malakka, still called Roa Malacca today. There he maintained a large household suitable for a man of his prominence, including a large staff of domestic slaves. There he died in 1783, leaving a considerable inheritance to his wife and daughter in Amsterdam. Rach was buried at the graveyard of the Dutch Church at present-day Taman Fatahillah. Though a member of the Reformed Church, he asked for the Lutheran minister and fellow draughtsman Jan Brandes at his death bed.
Judging from the many copies of the same views, he had organised some sort of standard production. The standard views could be adapted, with decorations or colours, according to the wishes of the person who ordered them. Another thing we can derive from the drawings is a certain sense of humour. His drawings often contain caricature situations, which must have been considered funny at the time, such as a urinating soldier or a vomiting sailor.
Little is known about Rach’s personal life, let alone his personality. He was not the only draughtsman working in Asia in that period. Several other artists, often in the service of the VOC, are known to have depicted the exotic world the Western newcomers found in Asia. Several fellow draughtsmen, such as Robert Jacob Gordon
, Frederik Reimer and the aforementioned Jan Brandes, Rach personally knew or could have known.
His work from Indonesia is artistically and technically more advanced. It is an important source of knowledge about life in colonial Indonesia in the mid 18th century.
in Jakarta and the Rijksmuseum
in Amsterdam have, since 1995, been in consultation over their common heritage in Hohannes Rach's drawings. The National Indonesian Library owns with 202 works the largest and most important collection. The Rijksmuseum owns another 40 works. The two parties studied the possibility of temporarily reuniting and the Erasmus Huis in Jakarta was prepared to support the united initiatives of the two institutions. It was expected that an exhibition together with a publication would attract considerable attention not only in Indonesia and the Netherlands but also in Japan, Singapore, South Africa and Great Britain.
During conversation in 1997 the parties involved recognized that conservation of the Indonesian collection had the first priority. A plan was set up to accomplish the restoration within an Indonesian-Dutch cooperative conservation project. This project also aimed at the exchange of mutual knowledge and experience. In 1999 the Rach-project was launched when HGIS, an organization set up by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs
, granted funds to implement the plans. On 12 November 1999, the National Library of Indonesia and Rijksmuseum signed a Memorandum of Mutual Understanding (M.O.U.).
In early 2000, the Rach Collection was restored. In the next year the collection was registered and photographed. In 2002 part of the Rach Collection in the National Library travelled to Europe to be exhibited at the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam.
The Johannes Rach Project was concluded by a seminar in the National Library and the opening of an accompanying exhibition as well as the publishing of a catalogue.
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
painter and draughtsman whose works from Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
and Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
are a valuable source of architectural and cultural historic knowledge. He began his artistic career painting topographical views for the royal court in Copenhagen. Later he traveled to the Dutch East Indies
Dutch East Indies
The Dutch East Indies was a Dutch colony that became modern Indonesia following World War II. It was formed from the nationalised colonies of the Dutch East India Company, which came under the administration of the Netherlands government in 1800....
, by way of Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
and the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, where he settled in Batavia
Jakarta
Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Officially known as the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta, it is located on the northwest coast of Java, has an area of , and a population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre...
(present day Jakarta), and had a military career in the Royal Dutch East Indies Army. At the same time he continued to pursue his artistic work with considerable commercial success. He set up a large studio with local employees who worked in his style, and produced depictions of the city and surrounding countryside for the local elite.
Early life and career
Johannes Rach was born in 1721 in CopenhagenCopenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
to Christoffer Rach, an innkeeper and alcohol distiller, and Anne Kirstine (Christine) Christensdotter. After training with Danish court painter P. Wickman from 1736 to 1742, Rach worked for the Danish court for a few years, painting topographical pictures in a close collaboration with J. G. Hertzog. Some of their works were based on contemporary copperplate engravings from Lauritz de Thurah
Lauritz de Thurah
Laurids Lauridsen de Thurah, known as Lauritz de Thurah , was a Danish architect and architectural writer. He became the most important Danish architect of the late baroque period...
's architectural works Den Danske Vitruvius
Den Danske Vitruvius
Den Danske Vitruvius I-II is a richly illustrated 18th century architectural work on Danish monumental buildings of the period, written by the Danish Baroque architect Lauritz de Thurah. It was commissioned by Christian V in 1735 and published in two volumes between 1746 and 1749...
(1746–48) and Hafnia Hodierna
Hafnia Hodierna
Hafnia Hodierna, Eller Udførlig Beskrivelse om den Kongelige Residentz- og Hoved-Stad Kiøbenhavn is an engraved architectural work on Copenhagen, published by the Danish architect Lauritz de Thurah in 1748...
(1748), which provided detailed and profusely illustrated catalogues of prominent buildings in Copenhagen and the surrounding countryside. Rach has signed some of his Danish works but many of them are signed by him and Eegberg jointly. The character and extent of their collaboration remains uncertain.
Saint Petersburg, Harlem and beyond
In 1745 Rach travelled to RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, from 1747 to 1750 working as a painter and draughtsman at Empress Elizabeth of Russia's court in Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
. Apart from topographical drawings and perspectives he also painted still life. In 1750, or shortly thereafter, Rach moved to the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
where he settled as a painter in Harlem. In April 1756 he married Maria Wilhelmina Valenzijn and the following year his daughter, Christina Maria, was born.
Probably due to lack of success as a painter, Rach turned to a military career in 1762 when he left for Asia to serve as gunner aboard one of the ships of the Dutch East India Company
Dutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company was a chartered company established in 1602, when the States-General of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia...
, leaving his wife and daughter behind in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
. The first leg of the voyage took him to Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
by way of Madeira
Madeira
Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
and Saint Helena
Saint Helena
Saint Helena , named after St Helena of Constantinople, is an island of volcanic origin in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha which also includes Ascension Island and the islands of Tristan da Cunha...
. He made some topographical drawings, among others, along the way.
Indonesia
In 1764, he continued to Batavia, where he was promoted through the military hierarchy, becoming a majorMajor
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
in 1779, while at the same time making progress as an artist of topographical views. Among his customers were members of the local elite, who ordered drawing of their country houses outside the city. Other customers ordered street scenes and depictions of the local countryside.
Rach was a man of considerable commercial skill and he used his position in society to sell large quantities of his drawings. To cope with demand, Rach recruited assistants, most often unknown, who worked in his style and are probably responsible for most of the drawings from Java
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
signed to him. Besides Batavia and its surroundings, his drawings depict Buitenzorg
Bogor
Bogor is a city on the island of Java in the West Java province of Indonesia. The city is located in the center of the Bogor Regency , 60 kilometers south of the Indonesian capital Jakarta...
, the north Javanese coastal cities, some cities on Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
and other settlements of the Dutch East Asia Company in Asia.
Rach lived in a house at the Roea Malakka, still called Roa Malacca today. There he maintained a large household suitable for a man of his prominence, including a large staff of domestic slaves. There he died in 1783, leaving a considerable inheritance to his wife and daughter in Amsterdam. Rach was buried at the graveyard of the Dutch Church at present-day Taman Fatahillah. Though a member of the Reformed Church, he asked for the Lutheran minister and fellow draughtsman Jan Brandes at his death bed.
Judging from the many copies of the same views, he had organised some sort of standard production. The standard views could be adapted, with decorations or colours, according to the wishes of the person who ordered them. Another thing we can derive from the drawings is a certain sense of humour. His drawings often contain caricature situations, which must have been considered funny at the time, such as a urinating soldier or a vomiting sailor.
Little is known about Rach’s personal life, let alone his personality. He was not the only draughtsman working in Asia in that period. Several other artists, often in the service of the VOC, are known to have depicted the exotic world the Western newcomers found in Asia. Several fellow draughtsmen, such as Robert Jacob Gordon
Robert Jacob Gordon
Robert Jacob Gordon , was a Dutch explorer, soldier, artist, naturalist and linguist of Scottish descent.-Life:...
, Frederik Reimer and the aforementioned Jan Brandes, Rach personally knew or could have known.
Legacy
Rach's work from Copenhagen is artistically quite primitive but it is of great architectural and ciltiral historic valuue since it provides valuable information on both buildings and street life of his day. To the extent they rely on Thurah's engravings, they supplement these by documenting colour schemes. In some cases, thorough examination of buildings have been able to confirm the accuracy of his reproduction of colours and his work is therefore considered of great source value.His work from Indonesia is artistically and technically more advanced. It is an important source of knowledge about life in colonial Indonesia in the mid 18th century.
Johannes Rach Project
The National Library of IndonesiaNational Library of Indonesia
The National Library of Indonesia is the legal deposit library of Indonesia. It serves primarily as a humanities library alongside several others holding national responsibilities for science and agriculture. The national library was established in 1980 through a decree of the Ministry of...
in Jakarta and the Rijksmuseum
Rijksmuseum
The Rijksmuseum Amsterdam or simply Rijksmuseum is a Dutch national museum in Amsterdam, located on the Museumplein. The museum is dedicated to arts, crafts, and history. It has a large collection of paintings from the Dutch Golden Age and a substantial collection of Asian art...
in Amsterdam have, since 1995, been in consultation over their common heritage in Hohannes Rach's drawings. The National Indonesian Library owns with 202 works the largest and most important collection. The Rijksmuseum owns another 40 works. The two parties studied the possibility of temporarily reuniting and the Erasmus Huis in Jakarta was prepared to support the united initiatives of the two institutions. It was expected that an exhibition together with a publication would attract considerable attention not only in Indonesia and the Netherlands but also in Japan, Singapore, South Africa and Great Britain.
During conversation in 1997 the parties involved recognized that conservation of the Indonesian collection had the first priority. A plan was set up to accomplish the restoration within an Indonesian-Dutch cooperative conservation project. This project also aimed at the exchange of mutual knowledge and experience. In 1999 the Rach-project was launched when HGIS, an organization set up by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Netherlands)
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the Dutch ministry of foreign affairs: it is occupied with the external relations of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, including European cooperation and International development...
, granted funds to implement the plans. On 12 November 1999, the National Library of Indonesia and Rijksmuseum signed a Memorandum of Mutual Understanding (M.O.U.).
In early 2000, the Rach Collection was restored. In the next year the collection was registered and photographed. In 2002 part of the Rach Collection in the National Library travelled to Europe to be exhibited at the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam.
The Johannes Rach Project was concluded by a seminar in the National Library and the opening of an accompanying exhibition as well as the publishing of a catalogue.