23 March 1839 – 3 October 1926
Otto Eerelman was a distinguished Dutch painter celebrated for his lifelike depictions of dogs and horses. Born in Groningen, he demonstrated an early talent for art, enrolling at the Academie Minerva in 1860 against his parents’ wishes. There, he studied under J.H. Egenberger before continuing his education at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp and receiving private lessons from Lawrence Alma-Tadema.
Eerelman’s career as an artist included a stint as a teacher at the Academie Minerva from 1867 to 1874. He then moved to Brussels and later to The Hague, where he resided from 1875 until 1902. During his time in The Hague, he became a court painter and created several portraits of Queen Wilhelmina, both as a princess and as a queen. Many of these works are still on display in Het Loo Palace.
In 1898, Eerelman gained widespread recognition with the publication of “Horse Races,” an album featuring 40 lithographs of his paintings by Richard Schoenbeck. The collection included a portrait of Queen Wilhelmina’s favorite horse, “Woyko,” and became highly popular. His works were later compiled and translated into English by Clara Bell under the title “Horses and Dogs.”
One of his most famous paintings, “De paardenkeuring op de Grote Markt op de 28ste augustus,” captures an annual horse celebration commemorating the lifting of the Siege of Groningen. Due to health issues, Eerelman spent five years in Arnhem before returning to Groningen in 1907. At the age of eighty, he was honored as a Ridder, and a street in Groningen was named after him.
Although he was largely forgotten by the mid-20th century, interest in Eerelman’s art has been revived recently. In 2015, a major retrospective of his work was held at the Museum Nienoord in Leek, reintroducing the world to his masterful portrayals of animals and reaffirming his place in the art world.
