wall label: Ludolf Backhuysen was the leading painter of seascapes in Amsterdam during the last quarter of the 17th century. His earliest biographer declared that he was "taught by nature" and reported that he often put to sea when a storm threatened in order observe the changing conditions of sky and water.
When the weather gods were at their least favorable was when he most loved to board a boat and sail to the mouth of the sea.
-Arnold Houbraken, 1718-21