Stadsgezicht met boten op een kanaal 1822 - 1893

This cityscape with boats on a canal was made by Willem Troost, using pencil and watercolor. The paper support is left bare in many areas, which adds to the sketch-like quality of the work. Troost employed the watercolor technique to imbue the scene with an airy, atmospheric quality. The washes of color are thinly applied, allowing light to penetrate and reflect from the paper beneath. This adds luminosity and depth to the image, suggesting the dampness of the canal and the soft light of the overcast sky. Consider how the artist applied the pigment, the way the brushstrokes define the forms of boats, buildings, and figures, with subtle gradations of tone suggesting depth and volume. Troost captured the atmosphere and the activity of the urban environment, with boats and figures rendered with swift, economical strokes. In the end, the way an artist like Troost makes a work of art is not so different from the work of the boat-builders and merchants that he depicts. All are skilled practices, embedded in a specific time and place.