Rivierlandschap met trekschuit 1662 - 1683

Jan van Almeloveen created this river landscape with a tow barge using etching. Born in Mijdrecht, Almeloveen made many prints of landscapes in the Holland region. Dutch landscape painting emerged during the Eighty Years’ War, when the Low Countries fought for independence from Spain. As the war raged, the region was flooded. Water became a source of both trauma and national identity, as seen in this artwork. Here, we see a rural scene with a barge being pulled along the river. The barge and the people on board are small, yet they suggest a story of commerce and connection, while two men are seen towing a boat. How does the labor of these figures in Almeloveen’s etching, who enabled the movement of goods and people, shape our understanding of the Dutch landscape?