Fields with a Village Road with Post Mill, from the series The Small Landscapes (Multifariarum Casularum)
Original title: Fields with a Village Road with Post Mill, from the series The Small Landscapes (Multifariarum Casularum)
kurzbeschreibung
Johannes van Doetecum I's etching Felder mit Dorfstraße und Bockwindmühle, made between 1559 and 1561, opens onto a rural view: a village sits behind fields laid out in rows. The print belongs to the series Die kleinen Landschaften (Multifariarum Casularum) and counts among the early witnesses to the rise of landscape as an independent subject in Netherlandish graphic art.
Description
Rows of cultivated fields fill the foreground; beyond them a village of thatched houses appears. At the left edge stands a post mile-marker, while on the right a post mill stands out distinctly from the other buildings. A single figure rides on horseback through the scene. The style is plain yet detailed, as is characteristic of sixteenth-century Netherlandish landscape art. Kept in black and white, the light falls evenly, without strong shadows, which reinforces the calm mood.
Context
Created between 1559 and 1561, the etching belongs to the series Die kleinen Landschaften, which Johannes van Doetecum I engraved after designs by other artists. This set is considered pioneering for the emancipation of landscape depiction in Netherlandish art. Van Doetecum worked as a copper engraver and publisher in Antwerp, a centre of printmaking in the sixteenth century. The prints circulated in several editions and shaped the image of the Netherlandish landscape throughout Europe.
Impact
The etching conveys an idyllic, ordered stillness, helped by the even distribution of light and the clear linework. Faithful detail and a simple arrangement invite quiet looking and bring out the beauty of peasant life.
Technique
The present sheet is an etching in its first state; four states are known in total. The plate measures 20.3 cm in width, the sheet 17.6 × 25.1 cm. The etching process allows fine lines and precise reproduction of detail, as can be seen in the fields and buildings.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)