Landscape with Gypsy Fortune-tellers 

Hendrick Avercamp created "Landscape with Gypsy Fortune-tellers" with pen, brown ink, and watercolor on paper. The composition is divided, a barren left side with a few figures contrasted with a bustling right side dominated by architecture. Avercamp creates a scene where color subtly distinguishes between groups of people. Notice the palette—muted greens, browns, and reds—which ties the gypsies to the landscape. This contrasts with the villagers dressed in muted blues, whites, and grays, visually connecting them to the buildings. Avercamp plays with perspective, using the figures to lead our eye through the scene, from the fortune-tellers on the left to the gathering crowd on the right. The artist seems to suggest social commentary through the spatial arrangement of different groups. The muted tones lend to the atmosphere, reflecting the transience of life. Avercamp leaves us to consider the human element within the broader scope of nature and society.