Langs de Vaart: along the river near Noorden

Weissenbruch found his motives in the surroundings of The Hague, and from 1875 onwards he also frequently chose Noorden and Nieuwkoop as subjects for his paintings. It was a region with waterways and lakes, weather-beaten houses and willows, with high, wide skies above. The painter was particularly fascinated with the permanently changing skies. He found it an important part of a work of art: " De lucht is de hoofdzaak in een schilderij. Als je lucht niet goed is, dan deugt je schilderij niet. De lucht beheerscht het heele landschap!, " (lit: Hans Janssen, Wim van Sinderen, De Haagse School, Rotterdam 1997, p. 46.)

The present painting shows a panoramic view of a landscape in the region of Nieuwkoop, near the small village of Noorden. This large painting with riders along a canal is dated 1885. There is a study by Weissenbruch of the same subject in the collection of the Dordrechts Museum, Een poldervaart bij Noorden. (lit: W.Laanstra, Johan Hendrik Weissenbruch 1824-1903, Amsterdam 1992, p.89, ill.). Two other works with the same subject are known to be painted by Weissenbruch. An oil painting on panel, Op het jaagpad langs de Amstel and a watercolour, Jaagpad bij Noorden. (lit: Pieter A. Scheen, Lexicon Nederlandse beeldende kunstenaars, The Hague 1970, ill.). It is not only the size of the present lot that suggests it is the most important of the series, but it is also the exquisite sky that must have satisfied the painter.