Dutch Panorama Landscape with a Distant View of Haarlem 1654
philipskoninck
statensmuseumforkunst
canvas
abstract painting
charcoal drawing
possibly oil pastel
charcoal art
oil painting
canvas
acrylic on canvas
underpainting
seascape
painting painterly
watercolor
Philips Koninck's "Dutch Panorama Landscape with a Distant View of Haarlem" is a masterpiece of Dutch Golden Age landscape painting. Created in 1654, the work showcases Koninck's mastery of light and atmosphere, capturing the serene beauty of the Dutch countryside. The canvas depicts a sweeping vista of fields, waterways, and a distant view of the city of Haarlem, all bathed in the soft glow of the afternoon sun. The prominent sky, filled with voluminous clouds, adds a sense of depth and grandeur to the composition. This work is currently on display at the SMK - Statens Museum for Kunst and is considered one of the most important examples of Koninck's artistic legacy.
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A shadow cast by a giant cloud falls upon the land scape, creating a diagonal that divides the land into sunlit and shaded parts. The dunes in the foreground form criss-crossing lines, oscillating between light and darkness. In the far distance we see the contours of the city of Haarlem, the spire of the St Bavo Cathedral piercing the horizon. In front of the city, yet still far out in the distance towards the horizon, a flat stretch of land emits its own luminescence; perhaps these are the bleaching fields outside of Haarlem? The criss-crossing bands of light and shadow across the landscape create the illusion of an endless space. The Baroque era ushers in the coarse, loose manner of painting. Individual brushstrokes are clearly distinct and do not cover the underlying layers in shaded areas. Philips Koninck has painted the flickering interplay between light and shadow, between shadows and reflected light, a little like the eye would perceive reality on a summer's day. In so doing he follows in the footsteps of his tutor and fellow Dutchman, Rembrandt
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Here it is, then, the natural-looking, grand landscape spreading itself before our eyes. Our gaze is allowed to wander all the way out to the horizon, where we discover the city of Haarlem. We are clearly looking at flat, carefully tilled Dutch agricultural land here; land that man has taken from nature and cultivated. The term "landscape" (landschap) is originally Dutch and was first introduced as a painters' term. It harks back to the time where the mainly Protestant part of The Netherlands claimed their independence in the 16th century; the first pure depictions of landscapes emerge around 1620. Landscape painting served a specific purpose for a people who were constantly threatened by flood and by inner and outer conflict. It conveyed a message that nature could be controlled, and that in spite of all differences there is still something the Dutch all have in common: The reclaimed land.
Philips Koninck is best known for his panoramic landscapes, but he also painted everyday scenes, religious scenes, and portraits. Like so many other Dutch 17th century artists he had to supplement his earnings with other jobs and sources of income; Koninck was also an innkeeper and owned a ferry service operating between Amsterdam, Leiden, and Rotterdam. Inspired by Rembrandt Philips Koninck is believed to have been a student of Rembrandt (1609-1669), although no conclusive evidence supports this theory. Whatever the case may be, Koninck was certainly inspired by Rembrandt, particularly in his juvenile works from the late 1630s. The idealised Dutch panorama Unlike other Dutch landscape painters Koninck focused on one particular type of landscape: idealised Dutch panoramas inspired by the countryside of Gelderland. Koninck as a mature artist The painting shown here is typical with its high viewpoint from a hilltop overlooking a flat landscape. It shows Koninck as a mature artist who has developed his own personal style through years of application. Here, he worked with an unusually sketch-like style and a large-scale format which in itself served to heighten the significance of the genre, from being modest cabinet pieces to something approaching the status of the great history paintings.
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