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Rich and poor mingle on the frozen waters of a river. From the lower left corner, a man quietly observes the many skaters. At the center, well-dressed ladies ride in an elegant sleigh driven by a groom; the horse’s shoes are spiked for traction on the slippery surface. Two little boys in the right corner play a game of _colf _(or _kolf_), a cross between modern-day hockey and golf. And in the background, sledges transport people and commercial goods on the frozen waterway.


Avercamp, who combined the Dutch love of landscape with scenes of daily life, was among the first European artists to specialize in depictions of winter. The pearly gray tonality here becomes ever paler and the forms less distinct as they move into the distance, subtly conveying a sense of deep space on a frosty day. The setting may be the IJssel River at Kampen, the Hanseatic town northeast of Amsterdam where Avercamp resided most of his life. Mute since birth and likely deaf as well, Avercamp was called "de Stomme van Kampen," meaning "the Mute of Kampen." Despite this disability, Avercamp had a successful and independent career as a painter of popular winter scenes.

Details

  • Title: A Scene on the Ice
  • Creator: Hendrick Avercamp
  • Date Created: c. 1625
  • Physical Dimensions: overall: 39.2 x 77 cm (15 7/16 x 30 5/16 in.) framed: 64.8 x 102.2 x 5.7 cm (25 1/2 x 40 1/4 x 2 1/4 in.)
  • Provenance: Said to have been at the Imperial Hermitage Gallery, Saint Petersburg.[1] (Firma D. Katz, Dieren), by 1933; J.M.B. Beuker, Heelsum, by 1934;[2] by inheritance to his widow, Mrs. J.C. Beuker [née De Kruyff van Dorssen]; sold 5 April 1967 through (A. Martin de Wild, The Hague) to NGA. [1] In the catalogues for the 1934 and 1938 exhibitions in which it was included, the painting was described as having been previously in the collection of the Hermitage. However, the picture is not listed in any of that museum's collection catalogues. [2] Labels from the 1933 and 1934 exhibitions both say that Katz was the “exhibitor,” but they give two different names as the “owner” (removed from the back of the painting, now in NGA curatorial files). The owner’s name on the 1933 label is difficult to decipher, but appears to be two initials followed by “te H.” The owner’s name on the 1934 label clearly reads “J.M.B. Beuker Heelsum.”
  • Medium: oil on panel

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