Baruch Lopes Leão de Laguna was born on 16 February 1864 in Amsterdam to a Portuguese Sephardic family. His early life was marred by tragedy, continuing into his later life, when he lost his son Martijn in a motorbike accident. After his parents’ death when he was only ten years old, he entered the orphanage of the Portuguese Synagogue in Amsterdam. There, his talent was noticed and, at the age of fourteen, he began his training as a decorative painter at the Quellinus arts and crafts school. In 1880, the inaugural year of the Rijksacademie, Laguna enrolled. Together with Jan Veth, Jacobus van Looy, and Willem Witsen, Laguna founded the Sint Lucas association, of which Jan Toorop and Piet Mondriaan were board members.

At the age of seventeen, Laguna had to leave the orphanage and support himself. He set up a studio nearby in the Jewish quarter, the Jodenbuurt, previously home to Rembrandt. Like his predecessor, he was inspired by the faces in the community. In 1885, he exhibited at Arti et Amicitae in Amsterdam, a show that was well received by both critics and fellow artists, solidifying his artistic career. His breakthrough came with his drawings for Elsevier’s Geïllustreerd Maandschrift first publication in 1891, introducing Laguna to a national audience.

In 1898, he married Rose Asscher (1872-1944), daughter of a diamond cutter from London. Due to her poor health, they moved to the countryside in Laren, where he became associated with the Laren School of painters. Discovered by Jozef Israëls (1824-1911), the area around Laren, distinguished by its unspoiled beauty and diverse landscape, was ideally situated due to its proximity to Amsterdam. This community continued to attract artists into the twentieth century. It was home to Piet Mondriaan during World War I, where he met Bart van der Leck, who painted Laguna’s portrait in 1902.[1]

In great demand with the new American bourgeoisie, Laguna’s paintings were sold directly by the local gallery Hamdorff to the United States. Sadly, the 1940 German occupation ended his freedom and success. In hiding on a remote farm, no longer able to portray the Dutch haut monde, Laguna continued to produce work, although with limited access to models. As the German occupation continued and paint supplies must have run low, it is likely that the artist was restricted to use charcoal, a medium easily self-made by burning wood. The subject of the present drawing could have well been one of the kind strangers who had offered him refuge. Eventually, the Lagunas were betrayed and transported to the Auschwitz extermination camp, where Baruch was murdered on 19 November 1943.

[1] Rijksmuseum, object no. RP-T-1977-22