Renier Meganck

Renier Meganck[1] (Brussels, baptised on 14 September 1637 – Vienna, 27 November 1690) was a Flemish painter and printmaker known for his landscapes and still lifes.

After completing his studies with van Heil, Meganck was recorded from 1661 to 1669 in Ghent where he became a master of the local Painter’s Guild in 1661.

It is believed that around 1668-69 he was present in Kroměříž (now in the Czech Republic) (not far from Brno) where he worked on a series of landscapes for the Archbishop's castle.

[6] Meganck is first recorded in Vienna in 1671 when he acted as a witness and sealed the last will of Franciscus van der Steen, a compatriot from Antwerp.

It is known that Meganck arranged for the sale of four landscapes by the Dutch painter Hans de Jode to the Prince.

[7] For the Archbishop's castle in Kroměříž Meganck designed and partially painted in 1668-69 a set of 16 lunette-shaped landscapes, which are still in situ.

The medium quality works are presumed to be a collaborative effort by Meganck and his apprentice or assistant Kegel.

The autograph works of Meganck achieve a form of magical realism which was highly original for his time.

He sometimes placed figural motifs in his landscapes, on other occasions he just expressed the raw power of nature, with minor traces of human presence.