| Full text |
ART IN BELG
GIUM AND HOLLAND. Ixxxi
0 ever, produced also cheerful open air scenes; and others.
1ong the lan« -painters proper we may mention also Johannes
80), P. J. C. Gabriel (4828-1903), and J. B. Jong-
hin d (ig 519- 94 ), the last of whom was a precursor of impressionism
nce. At the head of the marine painters stands the vigorous
rik Willer Mesdag (b. 1834), who bas presented a collection of
tings to the state, including some marvellous examples of the
rbizon School and a number of fine works by his contemporaries
t The Hagu Madame Therese Schwartze (b. 1852) has won a Eu-
1 reputation for her portraits. But it is impossible here to ex-
haust the list of the excellent painters of The Hague, and we content
lves with mentioning only G, B Breitner (b. 1857), who reveals
narka able breadth of brush-work and depth of tone in his street-
1 scenes from military manceuvres.
é uredly not by chance that the reaction against the
Hague School at the close of the century took its rise in Amsterdam.
The prosperous but somewhat prosaic commercial capital challenged
the poetic and quiet seat of the court. Possibly it was felt that the
Hag ue School could not be outbidden in its own domain, or possibly
French, Belgian, or British influence was at w ork; but, however it
s, under the leadership of Jan Veth (b. 1864), the portrait-painter,
and H. J. Haverman (b. 1857), the rights of the line, of thought and
synthesis were proclaimed. The most original artist of this school
is Jan Toorop (b. 1860), in whose symbolical compositions we trace
e, Pre-Raphaelite, and Old-German influences, and whose
b Ss probably to be found in his pencil-drawines specially
his charming portraits of children. The most conspicuous ‘mon-
umental’ painter is Anton Derkinderen (b. 1859), who has returned
via Puvis de Chavannes to the Trecentists (mural paintings in the
dtel de Ville at °S Hertogenbosch: stained - glass windows in the
Exchange and the Unis ity at Amsterdam, The unfortunate
Vineent van Gogh (1853-90), who died ix ne, aimed at repro-
ducing the inner life of nature, at bringing down and fixing the
sun upon his canv His paintings, long scoffed at and looking as
though thrown upon the canvas in a frenzy, have now found their
way even into public collections, That the work of these artists and
their comrades deserves respect goes without saying. But that the
future of painting in Holland lies along their lines and pot along
lines of the great masters of The Hague is a view that will com-
elf to few.
and
was
er
BAaEDEKER’s Belgium and Holland.
14th Edit. |
