Landschap met drie bomen 1635 - 1660

Johan de Lagoor created this etching of a landscape with three trees sometime in the mid-17th century. The focus is on the trees, which dominate the foreground, but the background reveals a wider view of the Dutch countryside. De Lagoor was working during the Dutch Golden Age, a period of unprecedented economic growth and cultural flourishing in the Netherlands. The art market boomed, and artists began to specialize in particular genres such as portraiture, still life, and landscape painting. It’s interesting to think about what this image represents and what the potential meanings of landscape were at that time. The Dutch had only recently won independence from Spain, so perhaps we can read this artwork as a symbol of national pride. By looking at archival sources, such as letters, inventories, and other documents, we can discover the social and cultural contexts that shaped the production and reception of this artwork.