Jan van Nickelen

Jan van Nickelen (1655, Haarlem – 1721, Kassel), was a Dutch Golden Age painter.

[1] He was very inventive and discovered an innovation in textile production, which he was unable to exploit due to lack of funds.

[1] He also invented a new type of hard varnish, which he used in the production of chassinets, a painted silk backdrop for shadow plays and room screen decorations.

[1] His chassinets were popular with Johann Wilhelm, Elector Palatine, whom he met through his Amsterdam friend Herman van der Mijn and Jan Frans van Douven.

He won a commission to make screens with views of his properties, and Van der Mijn became the teacher of his daughter, the flower painter Jacoba Maria van Nickelen .