Andreas Schelfhout (1787-1870)
A sunny day at the beach of Scheveningen with the Oude Kerk and Paviljoen von Wied in the distance
signed and dated 'A Schelfhout 1835' (lower left)
oil on canvas, 66x85 cm
Provenance:
-Collection of a noble family, the Netherlands.
Andreas Schelfhout was one of the first painters in the 19th century to focus on views of the Dutch coastline, the sea and the beach, and by doing so, he greatly contributed to the re-evaluation of this genre in his time.
From the very start of his career in 1824, he regularly painted images of the Scheveningen beach with fishermen, and in his later works, with people strolling along the seashore. His interest in beach scenes was aroused by 17th century seascapes. That was the century when painters such as Jan Porcellis, Willem van de Velde, Ludolf Bakhuijsen, Salomon van Ruisdael and Adriaen van de Velde first chose this motif of the Dutch coastline. The composition and choice of subject in Schelfhout’s work can be compared to the work of Adriaen van de Velde, for example, but his perceptions were different: Schelfhout laid the emphasis on the atmosphere of the landscape. Since a trip to France in 1833, he had been impressed by the work of Eugène Isabey (1803-1886). Inspired by these foreign influences, from the mid-thirties he progressively worked on adding warmer colours and using a slightly looser brushwork.
Looking at this work from 1835, Schelfhout does not only depict the sea, the beach and the dunes. The numerous figures, the boats and the distant buildings portray the story-telling nature of the picture. In the distance we see an animated bustle around the fish market near to the ships that have just arrived with their catch. The elegantly dressed people taking a stroll are also looking at what is going on. In the foreground, to the right, wooden barrels full of freshly-caught fish are being loaded onto a horse and cart. To the left, a man with a dog cart is chatting to a fisherwoman and her child. At the bottom of the dunes, with the Pavilion von Wied above, there is a small group of elegantly-dressed people conversing with a rider on horseback. In the distance, the Old Church can be seen in the village of Scheveningen located in the the dunes.
Through his beach scenes, Schelfhout played a key role in the transformation and the reputation of this genre. Because of this, he had an important influence on later artists, especially the painters from the Hague School. This painting, ‘A sunny day at the beach of Scheveningen with the Oude Kerk and Paviljoen von Wied in the distance’ has been in the collection of a noble family for many decades.
Source: Willem Laanstra, ‘Andreas Schelfhout 1787-1870, Amsterdam 1995.
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A sunny day at the beach of Scheveningen with the Oude Kerk and Paviljoen von Wied in the distance
signed and dated 'A Schelfhout 1835' (lower left)
oil on canvas, 66x85 cm
Provenance:
-Collection of a noble family, the Netherlands.
Andreas Schelfhout was one of the first painters in the 19th century to focus on views of the Dutch coastline, the sea and the beach, and by doing so, he greatly contributed to the re-evaluation of this genre in his time.
From the very start of his career in 1824, he regularly painted images of the Scheveningen beach with fishermen, and in his later works, with people strolling along the seashore. His interest in beach scenes was aroused by 17th century seascapes. That was the century when painters such as Jan Porcellis, Willem van de Velde, Ludolf Bakhuijsen, Salomon van Ruisdael and Adriaen van de Velde first chose this motif of the Dutch coastline. The composition and choice of subject in Schelfhout’s work can be compared to the work of Adriaen van de Velde, for example, but his perceptions were different: Schelfhout laid the emphasis on the atmosphere of the landscape. Since a trip to France in 1833, he had been impressed by the work of Eugène Isabey (1803-1886). Inspired by these foreign influences, from the mid-thirties he progressively worked on adding warmer colours and using a slightly looser brushwork.
Looking at this work from 1835, Schelfhout does not only depict the sea, the beach and the dunes. The numerous figures, the boats and the distant buildings portray the story-telling nature of the picture. In the distance we see an animated bustle around the fish market near to the ships that have just arrived with their catch. The elegantly dressed people taking a stroll are also looking at what is going on. In the foreground, to the right, wooden barrels full of freshly-caught fish are being loaded onto a horse and cart. To the left, a man with a dog cart is chatting to a fisherwoman and her child. At the bottom of the dunes, with the Pavilion von Wied above, there is a small group of elegantly-dressed people conversing with a rider on horseback. In the distance, the Old Church can be seen in the village of Scheveningen located in the the dunes.
Through his beach scenes, Schelfhout played a key role in the transformation and the reputation of this genre. Because of this, he had an important influence on later artists, especially the painters from the Hague School. This painting, ‘A sunny day at the beach of Scheveningen with the Oude Kerk and Paviljoen von Wied in the distance’ has been in the collection of a noble family for many decades.
Source: Willem Laanstra, ‘Andreas Schelfhout 1787-1870, Amsterdam 1995.
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Time, Location
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