PROPERTY FROM THE COLLECTION OF J.E. SAFRA
Herman Saftleven
A VIEW OF LINZ AM RHEIN, WITH BARGES UNLOADING AT A QUAY AND AN INN NEARBY
LOT SOLD.
137,500 USD
Details & Cataloguing
Master Paintings Evening Sale
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New York
New York
Herman Saftleven
ROTTERDAM 1609 - 1685 UTRECHT
A VIEW OF LINZ AM RHEIN, WITH BARGES UNLOADING AT A QUAY AND AN INN NEARBY
signed lower left: HS 1663; signed, located and dated on reverse: Bij Linsz / . herman Saftleven. f.A. utrecht / .Anno. 1663
oil on copper
9 by 12 1/2 in.; 22.9 by 31.7 cm.
Read Condition Report
Read Condition Report
oil on copper
9 by 12 1/2 in.; 22.9 by 31.7 cm.
Provenance
Anonymous sale, London, Christie's, 10 July 1998, lot 26;
There acquired ($130,739).
There acquired ($130,739).
Catalogue Note
With its delicately painted features and vivid palette, this mesmerizing view of Linz am Rhein is an impressive example of the panoramic landscapes of the Rhineland for which Herman Saftleven is best renowned. Bathed in a subtle golden light and executed with exacting precision, this work encapsulates the unique artistic vision that defined Saftleven's output and established him as one of the most successful and versatile Dutch artists of the seventeenth century.
Born in Rotterdam to a family of artists, Saftleven moved to Utrecht in 1632. It was here that he established a successful career as a painter, draftsman, and printmaker. Saftleven's early work was reminiscent of artists such as Jan van Goyen, Abraham Bloemaert, and Jan Both, but by 1640s he turned towards renderings of small and exquisite landscapes, a genre that helped him develop a distinct style that would define his works for the last decades of his career.
From around 1650 onward, Saftleven traveled extensively throughout the Rhine valley. He recorded the topography and architecture of the lands he visited in countless drawings, which would later serve as inspiration for paintings he completed back home in Utrecht. Saftleven painted this peaceful yet lively vista of Linz am Rhein in Utrecht in 1663. He had first visited this foreign city, however, in 1651, recording it from another angle across the Rhein in a drawing now preserved in the Atlas Blaeu-Van der Hem in the Nationalbibliothek, Vienna (fig. 1).
Suggested Lots
Master Paintings Evening Sale
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New York
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