His birthplace is unknown. A signed document survives in Utrecht where he is listed as six years old and the son of Simon van Poelenburch, a Catholic canon in Utrecht. He initially trained with Abraham Bloemaert, and his earliest signed paintings are from 1620. He traveled to Rome where he was influenced by Adam Elsheimer and became a founding member of the Bentvueghels, the society of mainly Flemish and Dutch artists working in Rome. The Bentveughels would typically adopt a nickname referred to as the 'bent name'. Van Poelenburch's bentname was ‘satiro’ (‘Satyr’). He counted a few Roman cardinals under his patrons.