A Cottage among Trees on the Bank of a Stream

Artist: Cornelis Decker (Dutch, c. 1618 - 1678)

Original Dimensions: 25 5/8" x 30 1/2"

Location: National Gallery of Art, London

About Artwork: (1669) "Cornelis Decker is a little-known Dutch landscape painter who lived and worked in Haarlem, often painting in the manner of Jacob van Ruisdael – as he does in this picture. It shows the view of a hilly landscape with trees tossing in the wind and a stream running through rocky terrain. On the hillside there’s a thatched cottage with a dovecote perched on top and a little family gathered at the door. Further down the slope, a horseman splashing through the water pauses to speak to a man with a dog. A second man runs ahead encouraging his hounds onwards with a waving arm. But Decker’s work lacks the precision and drama of van Ruisdael’s. There is little sense of movement, especially in the sky; the multiple shades of green that van Ruisdael achieves are missing; and the rocks in the background have no real substance." - (National Gallery of Art, London)