COLLECTION NAME:
Art Collection
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UoEart~1~1
Art Collection
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Work Record ID:
0016726
work_record_id
0016726
Work Record ID
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ID Number:
EU0727
work_id_number
EU0727
ID Number
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Catalogue Number:
EU0727
work_catalogue_number
EU0727
Catalogue Number
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Title:
Canal Landscape with Figures Bathing
work_title
Canal Landscape with Figures Bathing
Title
false
Creator:
Oever (signed H ten Oever 1673) Hendrick ten (b.1639, d.1716)
work_creator_details
Oever (signed H ten Oever 1673) Hendrick ten (b.1639, d.1716)
Creator
false
Creator Role:
Artist
work_creator_role
Artist
Creator Role
false
Date:
1675
work_display_date
1675
Date
false
Description:
A Dutch landscape, a remarkable effect of a sunset. In the middle distance is a river, with several groups of nude figures, some about to plunge into the stream, other apparently have just leaped in. They are principally in shadow, with strong gleams of light on their shoulders, producing a peculiar, yet harmonious effect. This tones well with the view of a distant town and the softened tints of a serene evening sky. In this painting a distant view of Zwolle is on the horizon. One of the very few signed and dated works by this artist, it was originally assigned to Cuyp in the Torrie Catalogues and to Jan Ossenbeck in the National Galleries of Scotland Catalogues until 1884, when the signature was read correctly. Ten Oever did another version of the composition with clothed figures the following year. No particular significance can be attached to the subject matter. The subject of men bathing occurs again from time to time in Dutch painting of the period. This painting, which has been attributed to ten Oever since the discovery of his signature in 1884, shows male bathers backlit against a setting sun, creating an eerie effect. Ten Oever specilialized in unusual effects of light and shade creating mood through the use of long, evening shadows. The town of Zwolle on the horizon is reduced to a distant silhouette. 'Certainly one of the most striking and unorthodox Dutch landscape paintings of the seventeenth century, like the work of Aelbert Cuyp, this painting was conceived and executed in provincial isolation, far from the mainstream of Dutch landscape art. Indeed, ten Oever's work was once attributed to Cuyp and for a long time was thought at least to be the product of his influence, even though it is very doubtful that ten Oever could have known Cuyp's paintings. By placing the sphere of the setting sun in the center of the composition and the situating nude bathers before a Dutch town, ten Oever created a landscape virtually without precedent in the seventeenth century. The city seen in the distance is Zwolle, ten Oever's birthplace and home at the time of the picture's making, in 1675. This view is from the east. The tallest tower is that of Michaelskerk, the smaller tower to the right is the so-called 'peperbus' (peppermill) of the Onze Lieve Vrouwe Curch. At the left is the Sassepoort, to the right the Dieserpport. The most common view of Zwolle before ten Oever's painting was from the north or west, showing the lake called 'zwarte water' in front of the city. Ten Oever has in fact chosen the topographically correct vantage point that would show the setting sun directly behind the city. The landscape in this painting was repeated by ten Oever in a somewhat larger painting dated 1676, with totally different figures. A fully dressed man and woman and a different arrangement of cattle have replaced the nude bathers, imparting a typically Dutch, but also more prosaic flavour to the scene. The nude bathers set the work apart from ten Oever's other landscapes and it was an uncommon feature in Dutch landscape painting in general. Nudes are found in the landscapes of Poelenburch and Wtenbrouck and their followers, but those scenes often included mythological figures like Diana, or nymphs and satyrs. These figures are mythological and thus idealised and the landscapes in which they were depicted include no native Dutch features. More plausibly 'everyday' bathers appear in a few Italianate landscapes such as those by Pieter van Laer, or the clearly foreign scenes of Wouwermans. However, it is the special combination of such idyllic figures with a modern Dutch town that sets ten Oever's painting apart. Only in Paulus Potter's 'Cow reflected in the water' which is hung in the Mauritshuis, the Hague, are these motifs otherwise found in painting. Like ten Oever's landscape, the scene is Dutch, Delft is visible in the distance, and bather
work_description
A Dutch landscape, a remarkable effect of a sunset. In the middle distance is a river, with several groups of nude figures, some about to plunge into the stream, other apparently have just leaped in. They are principally in shadow, with strong gleams of light on their shoulders, producing a peculiar, yet harmonious effect. This tones well with the view of a distant town and the softened tints of a serene evening sky. In this painting a distant view of Zwolle is on the horizon. One of the very few signed and dated works by this artist, it was originally assigned to Cuyp in the Torrie Catalogues and to Jan Ossenbeck in the National Galleries of Scotland Catalogues until 1884, when the signature was read correctly. Ten Oever did another version of the composition with clothed figures the following year. No particular significance can be attached to the subject matter. The subject of men bathing occurs again from time to time in Dutch painting of the period. This painting, which has been attributed to ten Oever since the discovery of his signature in 1884, shows male bathers backlit against a setting sun, creating an eerie effect. Ten Oever specilialized in unusual effects of light and shade creating mood through the use of long, evening shadows. The town of Zwolle on the horizon is reduced to a distant silhouette. 'Certainly one of the most striking and unorthodox Dutch landscape paintings of the seventeenth century, like the work of Aelbert Cuyp, this painting was conceived and executed in provincial isolation, far from the mainstream of Dutch landscape art. Indeed, ten Oever's work was once attributed to Cuyp and for a long time was thought at least to be the product of his influence, even though it is very doubtful that ten Oever could have known Cuyp's paintings. By placing the sphere of the setting sun in the center of the composition and the situating nude bathers before a Dutch town, ten Oever created a landscape virtually without precedent in the seventeenth century. The city seen in the distance is Zwolle, ten Oever's birthplace and home at the time of the picture's making, in 1675. This view is from the east. The tallest tower is that of Michaelskerk, the smaller tower to the right is the so-called 'peperbus' (peppermill) of the Onze Lieve Vrouwe Curch. At the left is the Sassepoort, to the right the Dieserpport. The most common view of Zwolle before ten Oever's painting was from the north or west, showing the lake called 'zwarte water' in front of the city. Ten Oever has in fact chosen the topographically correct vantage point that would show the setting sun directly behind the city. The landscape in this painting was repeated by ten Oever in a somewhat larger painting dated 1676, with totally different figures. A fully dressed man and woman and a different arrangement of cattle have replaced the nude bathers, imparting a typically Dutch, but also more prosaic flavour to the scene. The nude bathers set the work apart from ten Oever's other landscapes and it was an uncommon feature in Dutch landscape painting in general. Nudes are found in the landscapes of Poelenburch and Wtenbrouck and their followers, but those scenes often included mythological figures like Diana, or nymphs and satyrs. These figures are mythological and thus idealised and the landscapes in which they were depicted include no native Dutch features. More plausibly 'everyday' bathers appear in a few Italianate landscapes such as those by Pieter van Laer, or the clearly foreign scenes of Wouwermans. However, it is the special combination of such idyllic figures with a modern Dutch town that sets ten Oever's painting apart. Only in Paulus Potter's 'Cow reflected in the water' which is hung in the Mauritshuis, the Hague, are these motifs otherwise found in painting. Like ten Oever's landscape, the scene is Dutch, Delft is visible in the distance, and bather
Description
false
Work Type:
Painting
work_type_notes
Painting
Work Type
false
Material:
Oil on Canvas/Oil Paint
work_material
Oil on Canvas/Oil Paint
Material
false
Production Place:
Holland/Netherlands
production_place
Holland/Netherlands
Production Place
false
Repository:
Art Collection
work_repository
Art Collection
Repository
false
Style or Period:
1670s
work_style_period_term
1670s
Style or Period
false
Style or Period:
17th century
work_style_period_term
17th century
Style or Period
false
Subject Place:
Holland
work_subject_place
Holland
Subject Place
false
Subject Category:
Landscapes
work_subject_class
Landscapes
Subject Category
false
Rights Statement:
© The copyright holder
work_rights_statement
© The copyright holder
Rights Statement
false
Repro File Type:
Cropped Tiff
repro_file_type
Cropped Tiff
Repro File Type
false
Repro File Size (bytes):
135651384
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135651384
Repro File Size (bytes)
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Repro Title:
Canal Landscape with Figures Bathing
repro_title
Canal Landscape with Figures Bathing
Repro Title
false
Repro ID Number:
0016726c
repro_id_number
0016726c
Repro ID Number
false
Repro Rights Statement:
© The University of Edinburgh
repro_rights_statement
© The University of Edinburgh
Repro Rights Statement
false
Repro Capture Date:
12/12/2007 14:43:00
repro_capture_date
12/12/2007 14:43:00
Repro Capture Date
false
Repro Publication Status:
Full public access
repro_publication_status
Full public access
Repro Publication Status
false