Rivierlandschap met molens 1864

Johannes Tavenraat rendered this river landscape with windmills using pen in grey-brown and brush in grey. Dominating the scene is the sun, a motif as old as time, symbolizing life, energy, and enlightenment across cultures. The sun's journey through the sky has long mirrored our own existential paths. Consider the Egyptian sun god Ra, whose daily voyage across the heavens mirrors the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. This idea finds echoes in countless traditions, from the solar symbolism in ancient Mithraism to its influence on Christian iconography. Psychologically, the sun represents the conscious self, the ego striving for illumination. The sun in art evokes powerful emotions. It taps into our collective unconscious, a radiant reminder of hope and renewal. The way we respond to its image is primal. It appears and reappears in many artworks, each time infused with new cultural meanings. The symbol of the sun continues its cyclical progression, resonating with us in ways both ancient and utterly new.