Circle of Hendrick Avercamp Lot n° 31

(Amsterdam 1585–1634 Kampen) Winter landscape with ice skaters, bears monogram lower left: HA, oil on panel, tondo, diameter 20.4 cm, framed Provenance: sale, Dorotheum, Vienna, 18 October 2016, lot 14; where acquired by the present owner The present painting of a snow-covered landscape with figures engaging in a number of activities is a fine example of Dutch seventeenth-century winter landscape painting, for which an attribution to the young Hendrick Avercamp has been suggested. In this atmospheric rendering of a cold winter’s day a thick blanket of snow lies upon a village and the surrounding countryside. The villagers are seen carrying wood, ice-skating in pairs and playing a game of kolf, or kolven, on the ice – a traditional game where players hit the ball over a particular distance with the aim of reaching the opponents’ starting point to win. The presence of the bare trees along the bank lend a structural and decorative effect to the composition. Hendrick Avercamp, who clearly inspired this painting, was famous for his splendid winter landscapes with their accurately drawn small figures and his perfect use of perspective. His figures are colourfully dressed; they are similar to Willem Buytewech’s (1591–1624) and Esaias van de Velde’s (1587–1630) early figures. Nevertheless, they show a stronger movement and they are more elegant than the ones created by these artists.