Mountain Landscape with Waterfall

This painting is one of the highlights from the oeuvre of Kerstiaen de Keuninck the Elder. The scene in the foreground, a cowherd with six cows, was formerly interpreted as the Prodigal Son. However, he is known as a swineherd, rather than a cowherd. The painter probably just wanted to portray an everyday scene. The scene is introduced by way of a ‘repoussoir’, the tree passage in the foreground, from which a path runs diagonally upwards. Along the zigzagging path are a tree trunk, a rocky passage, a monumental waterfall and a ruin. In between the tree on the left and the rocky passage on the right is a gently rolling landscape, which contrasts starkly with the rugged landscapes

De Keuninck painted in his Mannerist period. This landscape therefore marks a crucial moment in his oeuvre. The rays of sunshine bathing the landscape in a warm glow are very striking. De Keuninck achieved this effect by spattering the paint from his wet brush onto the canvas with a flick of his wrist.