Willem van de Velde the Younger

Sale, New York, Sotheby's, 29 January 1997, lot 206

Only relatively few of Van de Velde's drawings are executed in pen and brown ink, rather than black chalk and/or gray wash, but they include some of his most spontaneous and atmospheric studies.  Often, as here, he lightly rules the horizon line in black chalk before making his drawing, in which the sense of perspective is impeccable, the surface of the still water perfectly conveyed with the most minimal of indications.  In general, the late Michael Robinson dated this type of rather sparely drawn pen and ink study fairly late in the artist's career, around 1700.