Herman Saftleven plaque unveiled
On 14 January, a plaque was unveiled in the centre of Utrecht in honour of Herman Saftleven (1609-1685). The memorial stone was designed and crafted by sculptor Toon Rijkers. The idea for the placement came from Laurens Schoemaker, curator of topography at the RKD.
2. The plaque in the front facade of Achter Sint Pieter 7, photo Paul van Winden
Herman Saftleven's house
The stone was bricked into the facade of Achter Sint Pieter 7, where Saftleven lived and worked for much of his life. Together with his wife Anna van Vliet (c. 1613-1684), who was a member of the Utrecht goldsmiths' guild, he founded a family here. He produced more than a thousand drawings, prints and paintings at this location.
Design of the plaque
Toon Rijkers based the design of the plaque on a drawing by Herman Saftleven in the collection of Het Utrechts Archief and one in that of the National Galleries of Scotland in Edinburgh. The Utrecht sheet, dated after the devastating summer storm of 1674, shows the rubble of the collapsed nave of the Dom Church, with the Dom Tower still standing behind it. The small Edinburgh drawing shows Herman Saftleven at work. He is drawing on a loose sheet on a drawing board, leaning against a stick he has stuck into the ground.
3. Herman Saftleven, The artist at work, 1672, collection National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh
RKD Study on Saftleven
The plaque was revealed by Utrecht alderman of culture Eva Oosters and initiator Laurens Schoemaker, curator at the RKD. He wrote the booklet Wandelen over de Utrechtse stadswal. Tekeningen van toen en foto's van nu in 2022, in which drawings by Saftleven are contrasted with photographs of the current state by Maite Meijlink. Together with Frans Kipp and Jeroen Kapelle, Schoemaker published the online RKD Study In de voetsporen van Herman Saftleven. De Utrechtse stadswaltekeningen in 2024.
The memorial stone – a joint project of the Utrecht Geveltekenfonds and the Oud-Utrecht association – could be realised thanks to financial contributions from Centrummanagement Utrecht (CMU), municipality of Utrecht, Oud-Utrecht and the current residents of Achter Sint Pieter 7.