Winter Scene on a Canal
Artist: Hendrik Avercamp (Dutch, 1585-1634)
Date: about 1615
Dimensions:
18 7/8 x 37 5/8 in. (47.9 x 95.6 cm)
Medium: oil on wood panel
Classification: Paintings
Credit Line: Purchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey
Object number: 1951.402
Label Text:A canal has frozen over in a Dutch village, trapping boats and inviting people of different social backgrounds to mingle on the ice. Gentlemen and ladies greet one another, ride a horse-drawn sleigh, and rent skates alongside humbler villagers. A group of merchant-class men in the center foreground play kolf, a game related to golf, while three industrious peasants in the right foreground prepare to fish for eel through the ice.
Hendrick Avercamp, whose work was quite popular in his day, was best known for his winter landscapes and marine paintings. Perhaps his keen observational skills were enhanced by the fact that he was hearing-impaired. Into this scene he packs a wealth of small but telling details, from the man relieving himself behind a tree to the wading boots stuck on fence posts. He also included details that suggest mini-narratives: distant skaters who have fallen on the ice, the dog barking at the closed barn door, and the lone figure in the left foreground walking away from the festivities. The scene stretches into the distance, where the frozen waterway meets heavy skies, emphasizing the flatness of the Dutch landscape.
Hendrick Avercamp, whose work was quite popular in his day, was best known for his winter landscapes and marine paintings. Perhaps his keen observational skills were enhanced by the fact that he was hearing-impaired. Into this scene he packs a wealth of small but telling details, from the man relieving himself behind a tree to the wading boots stuck on fence posts. He also included details that suggest mini-narratives: distant skaters who have fallen on the ice, the dog barking at the closed barn door, and the lone figure in the left foreground walking away from the festivities. The scene stretches into the distance, where the frozen waterway meets heavy skies, emphasizing the flatness of the Dutch landscape.
On view
In Collection(s)