THE NETHERLANDS, HERE I AM 19th century painting

Volatile sky, unique cloud settings dominated the genre and most of the canvas. Impressive architecture, staffage appear subject to variable laws of nature. Playful light and shade effects, subtle presence of the sun (common in numerous Italian “sunsets”) is what astonishes beholders of paintings of 17th century masters such as Jacob van Ruisdael, or Jan Breughel, nicknamed “Velvet Breughel”. The same qualities will likewise amaze in 19th century works. Unusual lighting in paintings focuses the attention of the viewer on investigating further the limits of the cloudy sky and discovering narrow passes that fill the landscape with light. Let us now briefly look at 17th century painting to ask ourselves a question: does 19th century art represent the same pictorial language that appeared to be the one, most perfect to describe the character of the Netherlandish world? The paintings of Jacobs, Karsen, and Spohler are just a few examples illustrating this idea…