artus wolffort was born in antwerp and moved with his parents to dordrecht in the year of his birth. he trained as a painter in dordrecht where he joined the local guild of saint luke in 1603. he returned to antwerp around 1615 where he worked as an assistant in the studio of otto van veen, one of the teachers of peter paul rubens. during this period he lived in the house of van veen. he became a member of the antwerp guild of saint luke in 1617.