Cornelis de Vos (1584 – 9 May 1651) was a Flemish painter, draughtsman, and art dealer. He was one of the leading portrait painters in Antwerp and is best known for his sensitive portraits, in particular of children and families. He was also successful in other genres including history, religious, and genre painting. He was a regular collaborator with Rubens.
Cornelis de Vos painted in various genres. He initially painted mainly portraits and mythological, biblical, and historical scenes. He also created in the late 1620s, some monumental genre paintings. He used the monogram CDVF.
He was particularly skilled in painting group portraits as well as portraits of children. While de Vos’ portraits exhibit a new fluency of painting style and spontaneity in the depiction of children, this was combined with a simplicity free from rhetoric that harked back to the earlier Flemish masters. De Vos’ portraits are able to communicate a relaxed and warm human affection. In his depiction of children, he was a master at expressing their assertive personalities and playful energy. This earned him the recognition of patrons commissioned numerous portraits of children or family portraits featuring children.
