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Johannes Franciscus Cuypers

*1766 , Den Haag †1828 , Den Haag

The Netherlands experienced two periods of prosperity in violin making. The first took place in Amsterdam from 1650 to 1728; the second occurred largely in The Hague, from 1760 to 1840. This peak was primarily due to the Cuypers family, led by the father, Johannes Theodorus Cuypers. This workshop was undoubtedly the most productive in the history of Dutch violin making. Father Johannes Theodorus could not possibly have achieved this on his own, so his story cannot be told without mentioning his two sons, Franciscus and Bernardus. Cuypers instruments can now be found all over the world, often in the hands of professional musicians.

Workshop(s)

Amsterdam, ± 1785-1823

Den Haag, ± 1823-1828

From this builder

Instrument

violin

Johannes Franciscus Cuypers Amsterdam, 1812

played by
Irene Piazza

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Off to Amsterdam soon

Franciscus, born in 1766 in The Hague, was the third child of Johannes Theodorus Cuypers and Anna Maria Borneman. At the age of 17, he moved to Amsterdam, where he would live for the next 40 years. In 1698, he married Johanna Elisabeth Beukers, and they moved into a home on Leidsestraat. No children are known to have been born from this marriage.

Unclear role in his father's studio

Although he, too, was skilled in the craft of violin making, his role in his father’s workshop is somewhat unclear. However, a handwritten invoice from 1794 has been found in which he lists several repairs and maintenance tasks, which could indicate that he was primarily engaged in repairs rather than building new instruments. On that invoice, he lists, among other things, repairs to a Cremonese violin and a Stainer violin, and concludes with the phrase “by order of my father.”

A personal style

There has never been any concrete evidence of semi-finished instruments made by him that were supposedly sent to The Hague for further finishing. However, there are known examples of fully assembled instruments made by him from the time when his father was still alive, and which are therefore also signed under his father’s name. These instruments are often more distinctive in design, with more pronounced edges and angles and a refined scroll. Franciscus’s individual style truly came to the fore after his father’s death, when he began signing the instruments under his own name and listing Amsterdam as his place of residence. In 1823, he and his wife moved back to The Hague and lived there in the Hofje van Nieuwkoop, a small house owned by the Catholic Church, which suggests that they were not well-off financially.

Talent and Freedom

Franciscus is Theodorus’s most talented son. Although details in his work—such as the varnish—clearly follow his father’s style and thus appear distinctly “Cuypers,” his work is far more individual than that of his younger brother, who remains very faithful to the style of Johannes Theodorus. This is undoubtedly due to the fact that Franciscus lived in Amsterdam for 40 years. His personal style is clearly recognizable. He moves away from the Stradivari models often used by his father and allows himself greater freedom. Consequently, several models of his own design are known. Overall, his work appears somewhat more refined and graceful, and the scrolls are more elegant than those of the average later violin from his father’s workshop. The same applies to ornaments such as corners and edges, which are more pronounced, and to the f-holes, which are carved very cleanly and with great refinement.