''A Waterfall in a Rocky Landscape'' (c. 1660s) is an
oil painting
Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments with a medium of drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on wood panel or canvas for several centuries, spreading from Europe to the rest of ...
on canvas by the
Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
landscape painter
Jacob van Ruisdael
Jacob Isaackszoon van Ruisdael (; 1629 – 10 March 1682) was a Dutch painter, draughtsman, and etcher. He is generally considered the pre-eminent landscape painter of the Dutch Golden Age, a period of great wealth and cultural achi ...
.
It is an example of
Dutch Golden Age painting
Dutch Golden Age painting is the painting of the Dutch Golden Age, a period in Dutch history roughly spanning the 17th century, during and after the later part of the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648) for Dutch independence.
The new Dutch Republ ...
and is now in the collection of the
National Gallery
The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director o ...
.
This painting was documented by
Hofstede de Groot
Cornelis Hofstede de Groot (9 November 1863 – 14 April 1930), was a Dutch art collector, art historian and museum curator.
Life
He was born in Dwingeloo and spent some time in Switzerland in his youth due to weak lungs, where he learned Germa ...
in 1911, who wrote; "239. LANDSCAPE WITH WATERFALL. The waterfall fills the whole foreground, rushing down over rocks from a broad basin. In the left foreground a fallen tree hangs over the water. In the left middle distance is a wooden bridge, with firs and leafy trees to the left of it. To the right on the bank are leafy trees, one of which has fallen and hangs over the water. Behind the trees on a high bank is a cottage, with firs to the left of it. Dark cloudy sky.
endant to 240.
Signed in full, "J. Ruysdael"; canvas, 40 1/2 inches by 34 inches. Engraved in mezzotint by J. G. Prestel. Sale. Count von Brabeck and Count Andreas von Stolberg of Soder, Hanover, October 31, 1859, No. 235 (£1187 : 15 : 6, for the National Gallery). In the National Gallery, London, 1906 catalogue, No. 627."
Entry 239 for 'Landscape with Waterfall''
in Hofstede de Groot, 1911
''A Waterfall in a Rocky Landscape'' is very similar to other paintings by the artist from between 1660 and 1670. Although the depicted landscape is Scandinavia
Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...
, Ruisdael never left a record of visiting foreign countries outside Germany. From the middle of the 1650s he produced a series of waterfalls over boulders, surrounded by high pine trees, inspired by the work of the artist Allaert van Everdingen
Allaert van Everdingen (, bapt. 18 June 16218 November 1675 (buried)), was a Dutch Golden Age painter and printmaker in etching and mezzotint.
Biography
Van Everdingen was born at Alkmaar, the son of a government clerk. He and his older b ...
, who visited Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
and Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
in 1644.
File:Ruisdael Mountain stream.jpg, National Museum in Warsaw
The National Museum in Warsaw ( pl, Muzeum Narodowe w Warszawie), popularly abbreviated as MNW, is a national museum in Warsaw, one of the largest museums in Poland and the largest in the capital. It comprises a rich collection of ancient art (Egy ...
.
File:'A Waterfall in a Rocky Landscape' by Jacob van Ruisdael.jpg, Liechtenstein Museum
The Liechtenstein Museum is a private art museum in Vienna, Austria. It contains much of the art collection of its owners, the House of Liechtenstein, Princely Family of Liechtenstein, rulers of the principality of Liechtenstein. It includes import ...
.
File:Jacob Isaacksz. van Ruisdael - Waterfall in a Mountainous Northern Landscape - WGA20511.jpg, Fogg Museum
The Harvard Art Museums are part of Harvard University and comprise three museums: the Fogg Museum (established in 1895), the Busch-Reisinger Museum (established in 1903), and the Arthur M. Sackler Museum (established in 1985), and four research ...
.
See also
* List of paintings by Jacob van Ruisdael
The following is an incomplete list of paintings by Jacob van Ruisdael that are generally accepted as autograph by Seymour Slive and other sources. The list is more or less in order of creation, starting from around 1645 when Jacob began painting ...
References
External links
Information about this painting
on the museum website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Waterfall in a Rocky Landscape
1650s paintings
Paintings by Jacob van Ruisdael
Landscape paintings
1660s paintings
Collections of the National Gallery, London
Baroque paintings
Water in art