View of the City of Arnhem by Jan van Goyen

View of the City of Arnhem 1646

wood

abandoned

charcoal drawing

possibly oil pastel

carved into stone

underpainting

painting painterly

wood

watercolour bleed

watercolour illustration

watercolor

shadow overcast

"View of the City of Arnhem" is a 1646 painting by Dutch artist Jan van Goyen, depicting the city of Arnhem as seen from across the river. The painting, which now hangs in the SMK - Statens Museum for Kunst, is a prime example of the Dutch Golden Age tradition of cityscapes. Van Goyen's signature soft, atmospheric colors and detailed brushstrokes capture the subtle light of the late afternoon as it bathes the city and river. The scene is rendered with a sense of serenity, focusing on the everyday life unfolding within the city's borders.

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statensmuseumforkunst about 1 year ago

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In 1636/37 van Goyen lost a fortune speculating on tulip bulbs during the so-called "tulipmania". After this financial disaster he painted pieces such as a series of panoramic landscapes with the town of Arnhem on the horizon. The painting's horizontal format The characteristic belfry of Grote Kerk and the twin towers of St. Walburgaskerk are prominent landmarks. Typical features of the 1640s style include the horizontal format and the high cloudy skies above the flat landscape that pulls in spectators through the diagonal of the river, accentuated by the fields of light and shadow that divide the picture into separate parts. The artist's story Jan van Goyen was only ten when he was sent to study art in his native town of Leiden. At the age of 19 he spent a year in France and then concluded his education in Haarlem under Esaias van de Velde (1587-1630). The Haarlem master made his influence felt right up until 1626, as is evident in the figure-filled brightly coloured landscapes. Around 1630 van Goyen joined Pieter de Molijn (1595-1661) and Salomon van Ruysdael (c. 1602-1670) in founding the socalled "tonal" landscape painting, an almost monochrome vein of painting full of calm and simplicity in its representation of the nature and people of the Netherlands.