32 Hendrik Willem Mesdag (1831-1915) Bomschuiten and horses on the snowy beach of Scheveningen signed and dated ‘HW Mesdag 1874’ (lower left) oil on canvas, 122x162 cm
This painting exemplifies Hendrik Willem Mesdag’s mastery of tonal contrast and atmospheric effect, capturing the interplay between the grey sky and the bright, snow- covered beach. It is one of the few winter seascapes by the artist and demonstrates his ability to balance realism with mood, offering a compelling and evocative view of the Dutch coast. Painted in the winter of 1874, the present work captures several Bomschuiten on Scheveningen beach, set to embark on their daily fishing routine. The composition is anchored on the left by a prominent hull, while other boats are prepared along the distant horizon. Fishermen secure their horses to pull the vessels into the cold sea, while the snow- blanketed beach, rendered in Mesdag’s subdued whites and greys, conveys the sharp chill of winter. The frozen sand stands in contrast to the grey-pink sky, which occupies more than two-thirds of the composition. This haze casts a delicate yet haunting light over the scene, intensifying the fishermen’s struggle against the relentless cold of the North Sea. Born in Groningen in 1831, Mesdag began his artistic training in Oosterbeek, a small village on the Veluwe known as the ‘Dutch Barbizon.’ During this period, he met the landscape painter Gerard Bilders (1838–1865), whose devotion to capturing nature firsthand strongly influenced his approach. Later, he studied in Brussels under Willem Roelofs (1822–1897) and was inspired by contemporaries such as Paul Gabriël (1828–1903) and his cousin Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema (1836–1912). In 1868, he exhibited for the first time at the Société Libre des Beaux-Arts, an artists’ association that encouraged freedom from the rigid rules of the Academy of Brussels. It was on a visit to Norderney in 1866 that Hendrik Willem Mesdag discovered the subject that would shape his artistic career: the sea. Captivated by its changing moods, he began sketching waves and coastal scenes, soon recognizing that daily proximity was necessary to capture its full essence. This led him to settle in The Hague, where he built a home on the Laan van Meerdervoort (the present site of Museum De Mesdag Collectie) and later rented rooms on Scheveningen beach, for example in Villa Elba, allowing him to observe the sea in all weather conditions throughout his life. Mesdag’s international recognition came with the Paris Salon of 1870, where he was awarded the Gold Medal for ‘Les Brisants de la Mer du Nord’ (now in the Van Gogh Museum), displayed alongside Gustave Courbet’s (1819-1877) ‘La Vague’. The influence of Courbet is evident in Mesdag’s handling of the sea, and this accolade confirmed his lifelong commitment to seascapes. He continued to exhibit at the Salon over the next forty years, earning distinction as a leading member of the Hague School. In France, he was celebrated as ‘le poète de la Mer du Nord’ for his romantic vision of the North Sea. Drawing on his daily observations of Scheveningen’s boats and fishermen, he transforms this winter scene into a composition that balances precise realism with a subtle impressionistic sensibility. The arrangement of Bomschuiten on the snow-blanketed beach, the poised horses, and the expansive grey-pink sky evoke both the material realities of coastal labour and the ephemeral qualities of winter light, demonstrating Mesdag’s mastery of tonal refinement, atmosphere, and mood.
€50,000 - €70,000
Exhibited: -The Hague, Panorama Mesdag, ‘Mesdags uit de familie, werken uit familiebezit’, 29 March-4 October 2015. Literature: -Johan Poort, ‘Hendrik Willem Mesdag 1831-1915, Oeuvrecatalogus’, Wassenaar 1989, ill. p. 395, no. 33.02. -Evelien Visser and Suzanne Veldink, ‘Mesdags uit de familie, werken uit familiebezit’, The Hague 2015, ill. pp. 22 and 52, no. 19. Provenance: -Collection Panorama Mesdag, The Hague, April 1917, no. 40 (label attached to the stretcher). -Private collection, the Netherlands. -Auction, Christie’s, Amsterdam, 15 November 2015, lot 214, where acquired by the present owner.
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