Bart Vreijssen found an original nineteenth-century painting tucked between wooden icons in the warehouse of La Poubelle thrift store in Goirle, Omroep Brabant reported. The artwork, which carries a value of at least 400 euros, would have received a 15-euro price tag if it had gone unnoticed.
Uncovering the Work of Jan-Willem Rosier
The discovery came to light when Vreijssen investigated the background of the canvas. The piece is an original work by Jan-Willem Rosier, a Belgian academic painter known for religious scenes, portraits, and eighteenth-century daily life depictions. Rosier trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris before becoming a teacher at the Antwerp academy in 1885. He later assumed the role of director at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Mechelen in 1892.
During the First World War, the painter fled temporarily to England, where he taught at the London School of Arts. He returned to his position in Mechelen after the conflict ended, continuing his work until declining health forced him to stop painting in 1927. Rosier died in Antwerp on July 24, 1931.
Mastering Clair-Obscur and Light Studies
The Goirle find forms part of Rosier’s experiments with light. Training institutes of that era frequently assigned standard exercises, which the artist expanded upon in this piece. Vreijssen noted that the canvas resembles a hand-painted tribute to seventeenth-century Dutch Golden Age master Pieter Janssens Elinga.
As director of the Mechelse academie, Rosier specialized in clair-obscur, a technique utilizing exaggerated contrast between light and dark. These exercises allowed the artist to analyze how light reflects off wooden floors and panels to create realistic depth.
Evaluating the Warehouse Find
The identity of the person who donated the painting to La Poubelle remains unknown. Items arrive anonymously through the intake warehouse, where staff occasionally encounter valuable pieces hidden among everyday goods.
Valuations place the work between 400 and 1,500 euros, aided by a thin oil paint signature on the surface. The store expects the piece to attract interest primarily from Belgian art connoisseurs and remains open to bids.
Discovering the Jan-Willem Rosier painting in Goirle
Who painted the artwork found in the Goirle thrift store?
The painting is an original work by Jan-Willem Rosier, a 19th-century Belgian academic painter and former director of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Mechelen.
How did the painting end up in the thrift store warehouse?
The item was dropped off anonymously among standard donated goods at the La Poubelle intake warehouse in Goirle, leaving the original owner untraceable.
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