Salomon van Ruysdael

With Pieter de Boer, Amsterdam, 1965;
Private collection, England, 1965-2002;
With David Koetser Gallery, Zurich;
From whom acquired by the present collector in March 2002.

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com , an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This painting has been recently restored and should be hung as is. Painted on a single piece of oak, the panel is flat, the paint layer is stable. The retouches that have been applied are visible under ultraviolet light in some spots in the sky where some abrasions have occurred. In the foreground there may be some fairly broad retouches in the tower on the right and also in the figures, the church and the signpost on the left. The likelihood is that these areas have become thin over time and have required some strengthening.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

This strikingly simple and evocative landscape dates from 1643, a period when Ruysdael was moving away from his purely "tonal phase."  The coloring is still subtle and muted, though with the introduction of blue in the sky at upper left and tiny touches of red on some of the figures.  Also characteristic of this period is the artist's use of gently sloping diagonals to define the composition and the shadowed area of the foreground which, contrasted against the lighter middle ground, serves as a repoussoir.