The child of Protestant parents, Adriaen van Stalbempt spent his youth in Middelburg where his family sought refuge after the capitulation of Antwerp. However, in 1609, he returned to his home town and registered the same year as a master of the Guild of Saint Luke. Attracted by the genre popular at that time, he dedicated himself to landscape, as can be seen in some twenty of his works dating from 1604 to 1629. In 1632, the artist left Antwerp for London for ten months, summoned by King Charles I of England. He then seems to have abandoned all activity for a reason still unknown to us.
Van Stalbempt has often proved to be eclectic in the composition of his landscapes. Some evoke the style of Jan Brueghel the Elder. However, several characteristics help to identify his works: in particular, the technique used for foliage and the colour of the houses - light yellow rather than the pink used in 'Velvet' Brueghel's works. Indeed, it is Adriaen van Stalbempt’s unclassifiable and varied personality that renders his works all the more charming. Alongside Abraham Govaerts, he is considered one of the finest followers of Jan ‘Velvet’ Brueghel.