Francken [key], family of Flemish painters in the 16th and 17th cent. Prominent members were Hieronymus Francken, c.1540–1610, student of Frans Floris, who worked mainly in Antwerp in a classicist style; his brother Frans Francken, c.1542–1616, also a student of Floris, whose altarpiece in the Antwerp cathedral is a typical work; Frans Francken II, 1581–1642, son of the first Frans, who studied in Italy and was influenced by Rubens and whose Works of Mercy (Antwerp) and Prodigal Son (Louvre) are well known; and his son, Frans Francken III, 1607–67, a follower of Rubens and the painter of Moses Striking the Rock (Augsburg).
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