Joos de Momper and Frans Francken the Younger

A Flemish painter known for his landscapes, Joos de Momper the Younger (1564–1635) came from a family of numerous artists. After training with his father Bartholomeus, he became a master of the Guild of St Luke in Antwerp in 1581. He then left to study in Italy, where he frequented Lodewijk Toeput, called Il Pozzoserrato, and later in Paris under Hieronymus Francken. He incorporated many motifs that he had seen on his travels into his works and was particularly inspired by crossing the Alps. He was one of the first representatives of the transition from the panoramic imagined landscapes of the Flemish late sixteenth century to the more naturalistic approach of the seventeenth century. His works depict landscapes that are often mountainous, initially inspired by the paintings of Pieter Brueghel the Elder and Paul Bril.

As in many paintings by Joos de Momper the Younger, this rocky landscape is brought to life by a colour structure in which a succession of planes guides the viewer’s eye. These divisions help to create an impression of depth and an arial perspective. The first plane, dominated by tones of brown and red, is the most detailed and animated, appearing closer and more naturalistic. The intermediate plane provides a transition between a warm and a cold palette, with a rustic bridge over a ravine and then a waterfall springing from the high rocks on the right. The background, in blue and grey tones, is more lightly sketched, giving an impression of distance and creating a misty atmosphere.

The short, rapid brushstrokes contribute to the realism of the details. The artist has paid particular attention to the foliage and the surface texture. As in the Mountain landscape in the Musée du Louvre (1620–1630, Paris, Musée du Louvre, MNR 418) and the Landscape with Elijah fed by the raven (1600, London, Schorr Collection, SRR6370641), the painting includes motifs inspired by the Alpine landscapes that Momper had seen on his European travels. Consistent with common practice in Antwerp in the seventeenth century, the figures in his works were often painted by collaborators. In the present case, they are the work of Frans Francken the Younger (1581–1642).