Hoeve aan een sloot 1745 - 1813

Jacob van der Smissen rendered this drawing, "Hoeve aan een sloot," with pencil, capturing a rustic farmstead nestled by a ditch. The thatched roof and unadorned structure evokes a simple, pastoral existence. The image’s quietude stirs up echoes of the “locus amoenus,” the idyllic, sheltered place. This motif harkens back to ancient Greek and Roman art and literature. The locus amoenus appears again and again throughout the Middle Ages and Renaissance, a place of refuge and reflection in a world fraught with uncertainty. Even here, in 18th century Holland, as the world moved towards industrialization, the image retains the locus amoenus’ calming influence, a testament to its enduring power as a symbol of peace, triggering within us a primal yearning for simpler times. A collective memory resurfaces, a yearning for Arcadia, a reminder of art’s ability to resonate across time.