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Lot Essay
Born in 1803 as the eldest son in a family of artists, Barend Cornelis Koekkoek grew up with fine art. While his father Johannes Hermanus (1778-1851) was an acclaimed maritime painter, Barend Cornelis Koekkoek specialized in 'boschrijke landschappen en boschgezichten, ook wel riviergezigten' (see: A. Nollert, Barend Cornelis Koekkoek, Prins der landschapschilders, Zwolle 1997).
Once Barend Cornelis Koekkoek had completed his studies at the Koninklijke Akademie van Beeldende Kunsten in Amsterdam around 1825 he moves to the town of Hilversum. Located just outside Amsterdam, Hilversum was home to a group of landscape artists including Jan Hendrik Bodeman (1773-1842), Pieter Gerardus van Os (1776-1839) and Jan van Ravenswaay (1789-1869). The town was conveniently located in a hilly environment which offered woods, heath land and lakes as potential subject matter. Once Koekkoek arrived there he found a younger generation of artists, amongst them Jacob Theodor Abels (1803-1866) and Albertus Verhoesen (1806-1881). In 1824 a Drawing Academy was founded in Hilversum where Koekkoek seems to have been teaching, of which a local vicar's daughter could recall:
'...Er was toen te Hilversum een soort schilder-academie. De vee- en landschapschilders Van Os, Van Ravenswaay, later Koekkoek en anderen, hadden er een school waar jonge lieden onder hun leiding tot artisten werden gevormd. De allerliefste landelijke omgeving vol afwisseling van bouwgrond, heide bosch en water, waarin Hilversum en 's Graveland aaneen sloten, was bizonder geschikt voor hun studie. Zij droegen allen platte fluwelen mutsen en korte jasjes...' (see: K. Hooijer-Bruins, Domineesdochter in 's Graveland - Domineesvrouw in Zaltbommel, Zaltbommel 1981, p. 48).
Magnificent romantic landscapes form the core of Koekkoek's oeuvre and the present lot is an exceptionally fine example, capturing the essence of the natural world. In this monumental panel cattle is grazing peacefully in a magnificent old forest. Light enters the work diagonally from the upper left, lighting up the imposing and dignified oak tree nearest to the picture plane. The sunrays also allow for a myriad of different greens to be created amongst the denser forest whilst the fur of the animals takes on a glistening quality.
In the foreground a herdsman and his wife are both resting lazily on the soft forest floor. Near them a sheep drinks from a clear pond whilst in the distance travelers are heading towards a sunlit castle. The path they are on lead the viewer's eye between the trees, creating remarkable depth in the work.
The present lot is exemplary for Koekkoek's mature work of the 1850's. An unusually high level of finish is combined with a preoccupation for aged trees and recalls the work of Jacob van Ruisdael (1628-1682). The massive contorted branches and knotted trunks symbolize the enduring- and conversely transitory nature of life itself.
A reproduction of an engraving by Johannes Arnoldus Boland (1838-1922) of the present lot is kept in the archives of the RKD, The Hague [fig.1].
The authenticity of the present lot has kindly been confirmed by Drs Guido de Werd, director of Haus Koekkoek, Cleves, on the basis of a colour photograph.
Once Barend Cornelis Koekkoek had completed his studies at the Koninklijke Akademie van Beeldende Kunsten in Amsterdam around 1825 he moves to the town of Hilversum. Located just outside Amsterdam, Hilversum was home to a group of landscape artists including Jan Hendrik Bodeman (1773-1842), Pieter Gerardus van Os (1776-1839) and Jan van Ravenswaay (1789-1869). The town was conveniently located in a hilly environment which offered woods, heath land and lakes as potential subject matter. Once Koekkoek arrived there he found a younger generation of artists, amongst them Jacob Theodor Abels (1803-1866) and Albertus Verhoesen (1806-1881). In 1824 a Drawing Academy was founded in Hilversum where Koekkoek seems to have been teaching, of which a local vicar's daughter could recall:
'...Er was toen te Hilversum een soort schilder-academie. De vee- en landschapschilders Van Os, Van Ravenswaay, later Koekkoek en anderen, hadden er een school waar jonge lieden onder hun leiding tot artisten werden gevormd. De allerliefste landelijke omgeving vol afwisseling van bouwgrond, heide bosch en water, waarin Hilversum en 's Graveland aaneen sloten, was bizonder geschikt voor hun studie. Zij droegen allen platte fluwelen mutsen en korte jasjes...' (see: K. Hooijer-Bruins, Domineesdochter in 's Graveland - Domineesvrouw in Zaltbommel, Zaltbommel 1981, p. 48).
Magnificent romantic landscapes form the core of Koekkoek's oeuvre and the present lot is an exceptionally fine example, capturing the essence of the natural world. In this monumental panel cattle is grazing peacefully in a magnificent old forest. Light enters the work diagonally from the upper left, lighting up the imposing and dignified oak tree nearest to the picture plane. The sunrays also allow for a myriad of different greens to be created amongst the denser forest whilst the fur of the animals takes on a glistening quality.
In the foreground a herdsman and his wife are both resting lazily on the soft forest floor. Near them a sheep drinks from a clear pond whilst in the distance travelers are heading towards a sunlit castle. The path they are on lead the viewer's eye between the trees, creating remarkable depth in the work.
The present lot is exemplary for Koekkoek's mature work of the 1850's. An unusually high level of finish is combined with a preoccupation for aged trees and recalls the work of Jacob van Ruisdael (1628-1682). The massive contorted branches and knotted trunks symbolize the enduring- and conversely transitory nature of life itself.
A reproduction of an engraving by Johannes Arnoldus Boland (1838-1922) of the present lot is kept in the archives of the RKD, The Hague [fig.1].
The authenticity of the present lot has kindly been confirmed by Drs Guido de Werd, director of Haus Koekkoek, Cleves, on the basis of a colour photograph.