View of Rhenen

1646

Jan van Goyen

Painter, Dutch, 1596 - 1656

We look across low, rolling hills at a skyline with a tower, windmills, church steeples, and the rooflines of a distant town, beneath a pale blue sky filled with billowing white and ash-gray clouds in this horizontal landscape painting. The horizon line comes about a third of the way up the composition. The grass and scrubby vegetation closest to us is warmed with sunlight coming from the left side, and is painted in tones of mustard yellow, chocolate brown, and hints of sage green. The light falls across a road curving in from the lower right, where a group travels toward us. Two men wearing soft hats and rust-red tunics walk before a black carriage pulled by four gray horses. The coachman is wrapped in a cloak the same red as the men in front, and one occupant is visible inside. A man on horseback, dressed in a dark cloak and hat, rides alongside, with a skinny, pale brown dog trotting in front of him. A narrow, gleaming sliver of water with a flat-bottomed boat is to the left, just beyond the road. We see the boat from the long side, with three men near one end and bundles in the other. Another sailboat floats in the river, which winds into the distance to our left. Two more masted ships are docked in the distance, their sails furled. The clouds cast the back half of the landscape in shadow, so it is painted in cool tones of laurel green to capture the densely packed buildings of the town. Windmills and spires suggest more towns along the rise and in the deep distance. The artist signed and dated the painting in the lower right corner, “VGoyen 1646.”

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Jan van Goyen composed this grand, visually compelling panorama of Rhenen, a medieval walled city on the Rhine River, in 1646. Situating the viewer near the winding road that leads to the city, he masterfully captured the overarching sky, undulating terrain, and vast sweeps of Dutch countryside for which that region was known. Van Goyen depicted the scene from a small hill to the east of Rhenen, where he could view the twin-towered Rijnpoort, one of the city’s gates, as well as the majestic tower of the Cunerakerk at the city core. The painting brims with dynamic energy despite its tonal palette of muted ochers and grays. Billowing clouds create patterns of light and shade throughout the sky and across the land, defining the topography, while animals and humans, among them an elegant group of travelers in a horse-drawn coach with equestrian escort, bring added life to the scene.

Van Goyen traveled to Rhenen from his home in The Hague in the early 1640s by way of the Rhine and during that trip executed numerous drawings in and around the city, carefully studying its profile and character. These drawings served him well throughout the 1640s as he painted the city more than 30 times—from the east and from the west, from the water and from land. None of Van Goyen’s extant drawings relate specifically to View of Rhenen. However, he must have relied on sketches to compose this masterpiece, which is matched in neither scale nor drama by any other of his views of Rhenen.

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Artwork overview

More About this Artwork

This horizontal painting shows a group of eight light-skinned musicians and onlookers gathered closely around a rectangular, carpet-covered table. The front edge of the table runs parallel to the bottom edge of the painting, and seems close to us. Shown from about the waist up, the men and women’s vivid lapis-blue, coral-red, buttercup-yellow, lilac-purple, and moss-green garments fall in crisp folds. Bright reflections on the fabric suggest a satin-like material. Two women wear feathers in their hair and one man’s hat is plumed. One man, wearing crimson red and black, sits with his back to us to our left on the near side of the table. He holds the neck of a bass viol, about the size of a cello, with his left hand, and points to pages of an open music book with the bow in his right hand. The other people cluster on the far side of the table. A man to the left plays a violin; a woman at the center plays a guitar-sized bandora, and a woman to our right plays a lute. The musicians, along with a man who leans over the table from between the two women, look down at the music books. A young man behind the woman at the center holds up a glass of pale liquid with his right hand as he touches his left forefinger to his smiling lips. A man and woman stand close together in the background to our right, in the top right corner of the canvas.

Scholarly Series:  Dutch Paintings of the Seventeenth Century

Scholarly Article:  Dutch Paintings of the Seventeenth Century: View of Rhenen, 1646

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

“Collection of a Gentleman of Nottinghamshire;” (his sale, Christie, Manson & Woods, London, 1846).[1] probably acquired 1878 by H. Smith Wright, Nottingham. Thomas Wright [1773-1845], Upton Hall, between Southwell and Newark, Nottinghamshire. Dr. Abraham Bredius [1855-1946], Amsterdam. Sir George Donaldson [1845-1925], London; purchased 1906 by William A. Clark [1839-1925], New York;[2] bequest 1926 to the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington; acquired 2014 by the National Gallery of Art.
[1] Information about the 1846 sale, which has not yet been positively identified, is given in Dana H. Carroll, Catalogue of Objects of Fine Art and Other Properties at the Home of William Andrews Clark, 962 Fifth Avenue, Part II, Unpublished manuscript, n.d. (1925): 219, no. 317; original manuscript in The Corcoran Archives, Special Collections Research Center, George Washington University Libraries, Washington, DC; copy in NGA curatorial files.
[2] The fact that Clark purchased the painting in 1906 from Donaldson is given in the Carroll manuscript (see note 1). However, in a letter of 18 November 1906 to Corcoran director Frederick B. McGuire, Clark mentions that he has had a letter from the previous owner of the work, "Dr. Bredius" (The Corcoran Archives, Special Collections Research Center, George Washington University Libraries, Washington, DC: COR RG 2.0, Director's Records, transcription and summary in NGA curatorial files). This was Dr. Abraham Bredius, whose name is not mentioned in the Carroll manuscript. The exact nature and chronology of Clark's purchase has still to be determined.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1878

  • Nottingham, 1878, no. 48.

1906

  • Loan to display with permanent collection, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, 1906-1909.

1909

  • The Hudson-Fulton Celebration: Collection of Paintings by Dutch Masters of the Seventeenth Century, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1909, no. 18 (three publications; entries in 2 vol. 1909 catalogue and 1910 catalogue include repros. and have the dimensions of no. 19, NGA 2014.136.34).

1959

  • Loan Exhibition: Masterpieces from the Corcoran Gallery of Art, A Benefit Exhibition in Honor of the Gallery's Centenary, Wildenstein Galleries, New York, 1959, catalogue without checklist.

1961

  • 25th Birthday Exhibition: Treasures in America, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, 1961, catalogue without checklist.

1963

  • Masters of Landscape: East and West, Munson-Williams- Proctor Institute, Utica; Rochester Memorial Art Gallery, 1963, no. 23.

1978

  • The William A. Clark Collection: An exhibition marking the 50th Anniversary of the installation of The Clark Collection at The Corcoran Gallery of Art, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, 1978, catalogue without checklist.

1987

  • Masters of 17th Century Dutch Landscape Painting, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1987-1988, no. 37.

1991

  • Great Dutch Paintings from America, Royal Cabinet of Paintings Mauritshuis, The Hague; The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, 1991, no. 23 (shown only in San Francisco).

2001

  • Antiquities to Impressionism: The William A. Clark Collection, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, 2001-2002,catalogue without checklist.

2008

  • Pride of Place: Dutch Cityscapes of the Golden Age, Royal Picture House Mauritshuis, The Hague; National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 2008-2009

Bibliography

1907

  • Hofstede de Groot, Cornelis. Beschreibendes und kritisches Verzeichnis der Werke der hervorragendsten holländischen Maler des XVII. Jahrhunderts. 10 vols. Esslingen and Paris, 1907-1928: 8(1923): 55, no. 210.

  • Hofstede de Groot, Cornelis. A Catalogue Raisonné of the Works of the Most Eminent Dutch Painters of the Seventeenth Century. 8 vols. Translated by Edward G. Hawke. London, 1907-1927: 8(1927): 62, 210.

1909

  • Valentiner, Wilhelm R. Catalogue of a collection of paintings by Dutch masters of the seventeenth century. The Hudson-Fulton Celebration 1. Exh. cat. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1909: 19, no. 18, repro.

1910

  • Breck, Joseph. "L'Art hollandais à l'exposition Hudson-Fulton à New-York." L'Art Flamand et Hollandais 13 (June-July 1910): 59.

  • Valentiner, Wilhelm R. Catalogue of a Loan Exhibition of Paintings by Old Dutch Masters Held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Connection with the Hudson-Fulton Celebration. New York, 1910: 85, no. 18, repro.

1925

  • Carroll, Dana H. Catalogue of Objects of Fine Art and Other Properties at the Home of William Andrews Clark, 962 Fifth Avenue. Part II. Unpublished manuscript, n.d. (1925): 219, no. 317.

1928

  • Corcoran Gallery of Art. Illustrated Handbook of the W.A. Clark Collection. Washington, 1928: 42.

1932

  • Corcoran Gallery of Art. Illustrated Handbook of the W.A. Clark Collection. Washington, 1932: 41, 47, repro.

1955

  • Breckenridge, James. D. A Handbook of Dutch and Flemish Paintings in the William Andrews Clark Collection. Washington, 1955: 21, repro.

1959

  • Corcoran Gallery of Art. Masterpieces of the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Washington, 1959: 11, repro.

1961

  • Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. A brief chronicle of the 25th Birthday Celebration and Catalogue of the Anniversary Loan Exhibition, Treasures in America, at the Museum from January 13 to March 5 of 1961. Richmond, 1961: 63, repro.

1963

  • Masters of Landscape: East and West. Exh. cat. Munson-Williams-Proctor Institute, Utica; Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester. Utica, 1963: 30, no. 23, repro.

1966

  • Stechow, Wolfgang. Dutch Landscape Painting of the Seventeenth Century. Kress Foundation Studies in the History of European Art 1. London, 1966: 41, 482, no. 71, repro.

  • Dobrzycka, Anna. Jan van Goyen, 1596-1656. Poznań, 1966: 111, no. 164.

1973

  • Beck, Hans-Ulrich. Jan van Goyen, 1596-1656: ein Oeuvreverzeichnis. 4 vols. Vol. 2: Katalog der Gemälde. Amsterdam, 1973: 2:188-189, no. 387, repro.

1978

  • Haverkamp-Begemann, Edgar. "Jan van Goyen in The Corcoran: Exemplars of Dutch Naturalism." In The William A. Clark Collection: An Exhibition Marking the 50th Anniversary of the Installation of the Clark Collection at the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington. Exh. cat. Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, 1978: 51-59, no.40.

1981

  • Deys, H. P. Achter Berg en Rijn. Over boeren, burgers en buitenlui in Rhenen. Rhenen, 1966: 30, no. 68.

1983

  • Gifford, Melanie E. "A Technical Investigation of Some Dutch 17th Century Tonal Landscapes." The American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works: Preprints of Papers Presented at the Eleventh Annual Meeting, Baltimore, Maryland, 25-29 May 1983. Washington, 1983: 39-49

1986

  • Sutton, Peter C. A Guide to Dutch Art in America. Washington and Grand Rapids, 1986: 298-299, no. 450, repro.

1987

  • Beck, Hans-Ulrich. Jan van Goyen, 1596-1656: ein Oeuvreverzeichnis. 4 vols. Vol. 3: Ergänzungen zum Katalog der Handzeichnungen und Ergänzungen zum Katalog der Gemälde. Doornspijk, 1987: 3:187, no. 387.

  • Sutton, Peter C., et al. Masters of Seventeenth-Century Dutch Landscape Painting. Exh. cat. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Philadelphia Museum of Art. Boston, 1987: 329-330, no. 37, color repro.

1990

  • Broos, Ben P. J., ed. Great Dutch Paintings from America. Exh. cat. Royal Picture Gallery Mauritshuis, The Hague; Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. The Hague and Zwolle, 1990: 245-248, no. 23, repro.

1992

  • E. de Jongh. "Nationalistiche visies op zeventiende-eeuwse Hollandse kunst." In S. C. Dik and G. W. Muller, eds. Het hemd is nader dan de rok: zes voordrachten over het eigene van de Nederlandse cultuur. Assen and Maastricht, 1992: 74-75, no. 10, repro.

1993

  • Buijsen, Edwin, ed. Tussen fantasie en werkelijkheid. 17de eeuwse Hollandse landschapschilderkunst / Between Fantasy and Reality: 17th Century Dutch Landscape Painting. Exh. cat. Tokyo Station Gallery, Tokyo; Kasama Nichidō Museum of Art, Kasama; Kumamoto kenritsu bijutsukan, Kumamoto; Stedelijk Museum De Lakenhal, Leiden. The Hague and Leiden, 1993: 184, repro.

1994

  • Sutton, Peter C., and John Loughman. El Siglo de Oro del Paisaje Holandés/The Golden Age of Dutch Landscape Paintings. Exh. cat. Fundación Colección Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, 1994: 118, no. 26, repro.

2001

  • Spolsky, Ellen. Satisfying Skepticism: Embodied Knowledge in the Early Modern World. Burlington, 2001: 147-148, no. 7.5, repro.

  • Coyle, Laura, and Dare Myers Hartwell, eds. Antiquities to Impressionism: The William A. Clark Collection, Corcoran Gallery of Art. Washington, DC, 2001: 23, 66, repro.

2008

  • Suchtelen, Ariane van, and Arthur K. Wheelock, Jr. Pride of Place: Dutch cityscapes of the Golden Age. Exh. cat. Royal Picture Gallery Mauritshuis, The Hague; National Gallery of Art, Washington. Zwolle, 2008: 114-115, 224, no. 19, repro.

Inscriptions

lower right, VG in ligature: VGoyen 1646

Wikidata ID

Q31039656

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