In short
Jacob van Campen (died 1657) was a painter from Haarlem who brought the classical style to Dutch building. He designed Amsterdam’s town hall on the Dam, now the Royal Palace, which the city began in 1648. He left the work in 1654 after a quarrel, and the building was finished without him.
A gentleman who painted
Van Campen was born in Haarlem into a wealthy family; the year is given as 1595 or 1596. He was lord of a country estate, Randenbroek, and took up painting mainly as a pastime. In 1614 he joined the painters’ guild of Saint Luke.
He is thought to have spent some years in Italy, until 1624. What he brought back were the ideas of the Italian architects Andrea Palladio and Vincenzo Scamozzi, and of the Roman writer Vitruvius.
A house, a theatre, the Mauritshuis
His first known building is the Coymans house in Amsterdam, of 1625. In the 1630s he designed the Mauritshuis in The Hague with Pieter Post.
In Amsterdam he built the new theatre on the Keizersgracht in 1637 and 1638. It was replaced in 1664 and 1665, and only its gateway is left.
The town hall, and the quarrel
Then came a new town hall for Amsterdam, on the Dam. It stands on 13,659 wooden piles. While it went up, Van Campen lived in the most expensive lodgings in the Kalverstraat.
In 1654 he left after an argument, probably over the design of the barrel vaults. The city’s own master builder, Daniël Stalpaert, took charge and finished the work. The town hall was inaugurated on 29 July 1655, though it was not yet complete. The sculpture is by Artus Quellinus.
After him
Van Campen died in Amersfoort on 13 September 1657. His ideas travelled further than he did: the town hall and the city palace of Potsdam, in Germany, were based on them.
His town hall served the city until 1808, when it was offered to King Louis Bonaparte as a palace.
Where to look
Stand on Dam Square and face the Royal Palace. Look for the entrance. A building this grand has seven small arches where you would expect a great door. Then look up to the cupola: the weathervane on top is a gilded ship.
Where to see it
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