Pierre Tetar of Elven (1828 - 1908)

Petrus Henricus Theodorus (Pierre) Tetar van Elven, (Sint-Jans-Molenbeek, August 30, 1828 - Milan, May 1, 1908), was a Dutch painter and etcher of the 19th century with a preference for architecture, landscapes and Italian cityscapes (vedutas ).

Life and work: Van Elven was a Dutch painter and etcher from the 19th century with a preference for architecture, landscapes and Italian cityscapes (vedutas). He also painted some genre paintings with the French High Society.

Pierre was the son of the painter Johannes Baptist Tetar van Elven (1805 - 1839) and Sophia Francisca Noël. Sophie Hendrik was his sister, born in Brussels in 1830, Joseph Edouard was his brother, who was born in Amsterdam in 1832. The architect Martinus Gerardus Tetar van Elven, one of the founders of Arti et Amicitiae. and the painter Paul Tetar van Elven were resp. his uncle and nephew. The Tetar van Elven family lived in a building in Spinhuissteeg (number 16).

He started his education in Amsterdam, but left for The Hague, where he continued studying at the Royal Academy of Art. Pierre left for Milan around 1853; in 1855 he lived in Rome. Between 1856 and 1863 he was in Turin, where he married Anna Maria Angela Felicita Fumao (1831-?) (Or Annette Fumero) on May 13, 1856, and three daughters were born. He was appointed court painter to Victor Emanuel II of Italy before 1861 and produced some paintings supporting the Risorgimento. In 1866 he left and perhaps traveled with Tinco Lycklama à Nijeholt to Tunisia and Turkey, and portrayed them several times in Oriental attire. In 1869 he lived in Paris. Around 1873 he moved back to Amsterdam and moved into a building at Plantage Muidergracht number 33. He lived there with his wife and children. In an unknown year he went back to Milan, where he died. His works hang in Milan, Genoa and Turin, but also in Haarlem.