Jan Wijnants

Adam Albrecht Aivazovsky Ivan Konstantinovich Aken Joseph van Aladar Padly Allom Thomas Backer, Attributed to Jacob de Backhuysen Ludolph Balen I Hendrick van Barker of Bath Thomas Bassano Workshop of Jacopo Bassano II Francesco Baumgartner-Stoiloff Adolf (Constantin) Beer I. de Begeyn Abraham Jansz. Benois Albert Nikolayevich Benois Nikolai Leontjewitsch Berchem Nicholaes Berckheyde Gerrit Adriaensz. Blaas Julius von Bloemaert Abraham Blommaert Abraham Bogaert Hendrick Bogoliubov Alexei Petrovich Boilly Louis Léopold Boissieu Jean-Jacques de Boitmanis Ulrihs Bordone Paris Borisov Alexander Alekseevich Bossche Balthasar van den Bossoli Carlo Boudewijns Adraen Frans Bough Samuel Bray Jan de Brewer Henry Charles Bristow Edmund Broeck Elias van den Brueghel II Jan Bryullov Karl Pavlovich Burhardt Feodor Karlovich Carlone Giovanni Andrea Casanova Francesco Giuseppe Casteels Pauwels Castro Lorenzo A. Cats Jacob Charlemagne Adolphe Josefovich Charlemagne Joseph Josefovich Codde, Attributed to Pieter Jacobs Cole George Conca Sebastiano Conca Tomasso Maria Cooper Thomas Sidney Cotes, R.A. Francis Cotman Frederick George Craesbeeck Joos van Crampton Sir John Cranach the Elder Lucas Creara Sante Crespi Giuseppe Maria Crome John Cuyp Benjamin Gerritsz David Giovanni Decker Cornelis Gerritsz. della Bella Stefano Dmitriev-Kavkazsky Lev Evgrafovich Dobuzhinsky Mstislav Valerianovich Droochsloot Joost Cornelisz Dubovskoy Nikolai Nikanorovich Dujardin Karel Duvieux Henri Ellis Tristram English School Everdingen Allaert van Faed R.S.A. John Feldmann Valentin Augustowitsch Ferg Franz de Paula Filippov Konstantin Nikolaevich Fischer Johann Georg Paul Florentine School Franken Paul von French School Frost George Albert Gabashvili Gigo Gabbiani Antonio Domenico Gedlek Ludwig Gerlach Otto Goeree Jan Gorbatov Konstantin Ivanovich Gordon Sir Thomas Edward Gorschelt Fedor Federovich Goyen Jan van Gradovsky N. Grigoriev Boris Dmitrievich Grimaldi, il Bolognese Giovanni Francesco Grimmer Abel Groningen Jan Swart van Guardi Giacomo Guardi Gianantonio Hackaert Jan Hackert Jacob Philipp Harding James Duffield Harlamoff Alexei Alekseevich Havell William Heeremans Thomas Herring Jnr John Frederick Hilair Jean-Baptiste Hoet Gerard Ibbetson Julius Caesar Issupoff Alexei Vladimirovich Ivanov Ivan Andreevich Jankowsky Johann Wilhelm Kalf Willem Kapustin Grigorij Ivanovich Karazin Nikolai Nikolaevich Karlsonn Konstantin Kennington Eric Keuninck the Elder Kerstiaen de Key Adriaen Thomasz. Key Attributed to Adriaen Thomasz. Klodt von Jurgensburg Baron Mikhail Konstantinovich Koerner Ernest Karl Eugen Kolchin Petr Petrovich Kolesnikov Stepan Feodorovich Kollmann Karl Ivanovich Kondratenko Gavril Pavlovich Koninck Daniël de Kotov Nikolai Grigorievich Krachkovsky Josef Evstafievich Kravchenko Aleksey Ilyich Lagorio Lev Felixovich Lallemand Attributed to Jean-Baptiste Lancerey Yevgeny Alexandrovich Landseer Charles Langer Olaf Viggo Peter Lattry Mikhail Pelopidovich Le Prince Jean-Baptiste Lee Frederick Richard Lingelbach Johannes Loo Carle van Loutherbourg, R.A. Philipe-Jacques de Lovatti Count Matteo Ludoviki Pierre Alexandrovich Parisot, called Luti Benedetto Maes Nicolaes Maevsky Mechislav Silvesterovich Maggiotto Domenico Maistre Count Xavier de Mak Paul Makovsky Konstantin Egorovich Makovsky Vladimir Egorovich Maliavin Philip Andreyevich Malyshev Nikolai Tarasievich Man Cornelis de Martos Nikita Ivanovich Martynov Andrey Yefimovich Massys Jan Mathauser Josef McConnell William Michallon Achille Etna Mieris Willem van Molenaer II Jan Molijn Pieter de Mols Robert Charles Gustave Laurens Momper Philippe de Momper II Joos de Montferrand After Auguste Ricard De Moor Carel de Morandi Giovanni Maria Moucheron Frederik de Nash Frederick Neapolitan School Neeffs The Elder Pieter Nesterov Mikhail Vasilevich Neyn Pieter de Nikitin Ivan Nikitich North Italian School Opitz Georg Emmanuel Orizzonte Jan Frans van Bloemen, called Orlov J Orlovsky Alexander Osipovich Ovsyannikov Sergey Osipovich Palmieri Pietro Giacomo Pantoja de la Cruz Juan Parme Jean-Antoine Julien, called Julien de Patersson Benjamin Pavlikevitch J Pellegrini Giovanni Antonio Perez, von Baron Josef Berres Pierre Jean-Baptist-Marie Pillement Jean-Baptiste Piola Domenico Pocock Nicholas Poelenburch Cornelis van Poerson Charles Poplavsky Ludvig Ludvigovich Premazzi Luigi Ossipovich Preziosi Count Amadeo Prianishnikov Ivan Petrovich Repin Ilya Yefimovich Repton Humphrey Richards John Inigo Roepel Coenraet Rogier Camille Rombouts Salomon Romney George Roubaud Franz Alekseevich Russian School Ruysdael Salomon van Sabatelli Luigi Savitsky Georgy Konstantinovich Schmerling Oskar Schmidt Genrikh Genrikhovich Schongauer Follower of Martin School Mid-Sixteenth Century Anglo-Netherlandish School, c.1535 Flemish School, Eighteenth Century Venetian Schreyer Christian Adolf Schwarz Attributed to Christoph Schwarz Christoph Sellaer Vincent Shishkin Ivan Ivanovich Siberechts Jan Siemiradzki Henryk Simpson William Snyders Frans Snyders and Studio Frans Sokolov Pyotr Petrovich Solimena Francesco South Netherlandish School Spranger Bartholomäus Stanfield George Clarkson Stanfield RA Clarkson Stevaerts Palamedes Palamedesz., called Stevens Stone Frank Stoop Maerten Strechine Stephanie von Sustris Lambert Sverchkov Nicholai Egorovich Svetoslavsky Sergei Ivanovich Teniers II David Tiepolo Giovanni Battista Tintoretto Domenico Toorenvliet Jacob Traballesi Bartolommeo Trutovsky Konstantin Alexandrovich Turner, R.A. Joseph Mallord William Tweenhuysen II Helmich von Uden Lucas van Valckenborch Lucas van Valentin Emile Vanvitelli Circle of Gaspar van Wittel, called Varley John Vasilev Ivan Vasnetsov Apollinary Mikhailovich Velde Adriaen van de Velde Esaias van de Velde the Younger Willem van de Venetian School Verburgh Dionijs Vereschagin Petr Petrovich Verschuring Hendrik Verschuur Wouter Vickers Alfred Gomersal Victors Jan Vignali Jacopo Villiers de l'Isle Adam Emile Samoilovich Visotsky Konstantin Semeonovich Vladimirov Ivan Alekseevich Vlieger Simon Jacobsz de Voloshin Maksimilian Aleksandrovich Vorobiev Sokrat Maksimovich Vrancx Sebastian Ward James Watteau, called Watteau of Lille Louis-Joseph Webb James Weiss Joseph Andreas Wet I Jacob Willemsz. de Wheatley, R.A. Francis Wijnants Jan Wilson Alexander Wingfield James Digman Withoos Matthias Wouwerman Philips Wtewael Joachim Anthonisz. Wyck Thomas Yakovlev Aleksandr Evgen'evich Zeeman Reinier Nooms, called Zhukovsky Rudolf Kazimirovich Zommer Richard Karlovich Zucchi Attributed to Antonio

ijnants Jan

(Haarlem 1635 - Amsterdam 1684)

Biography

A Landscape with Peasants Conversing on a Countryside Path

Biography

Wijnants was a Dutch artist whose father was probably the art dealer Jan Wijnants, who was recorded as a member of the Haarlem Guild of St Luke in 1642. Jan the younger is documented in Haarlem several times until his departure for Amsterdam around 1660. A document pertaining to his father implies, however, that in 1653 Wijnants the younger was in Rotterdam, where the painters Ludolf de Jongh and Adam Pynacker were active. Perhaps the most important early influence on Wijnants was de Jongh’s brother-in-law, Dirck Wijntrack (before 1625–78), noted for his paintings of wildfowl. There is much evidence to suggest that the two artists often worked together during the 1650s.

Although Hofstede de Groot dated 12 of Wijnant’s pictures to an early period from 1643 to 1652, most of these can be assigned to a later period either on stylistic grounds or by a correct reading of the dates, or else reattributed to other artists. Wijnants probably began to paint shortly after 1650. Among his earliest certain dated works is the Cottage (1654; untraced). The painting is signed by both Wijnants and Wijntrack, and the chickens, ducks and other birds in the foreground are clearly by Wijntrack’s hand. Wijntrack may also have been responsible for the wildfowl in the slightly later Peasant Cottage (Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum). In both of these characteristic early paintings brick farm buildings and cottages occupy a major portion of the composition.

In 1659 Wijnants is again documented in Haarlem, and in the paintings of this period, such as Landscape with a Dead Tree and a Peasant Driving a Sheep along a Road (1659; London, National Gallery), the buildings, considerably smaller, have been relegated to the middle distance. The stark tree-trunk, a motif derived from Jacob van Ruisdael, was to re-emerge as a kind of leitmotif in Wijnant’s paintings of the second half of his career. By December 1660 Wijnants had moved to Amsterdam, where he married Catharina van der Veer. He remained there for the rest of his life, keeping an inn to supplement his income (he was constantly falling into debt). He was buried in the graveyard of the Leidsekerk.

Almost all of Wijnants’s later paintings, such as Landscape with a Sandy Slope (St Petersburg, Hermitage), are landscapes, particularly dunescapes based on the broad ridge of sand dunes near Haarlem. Wijnants followed in the tradition of dune painting established by Pieter de Molijn, Philips Wouwerman, van Ruisdael and others. Typical of his early work of the 1660s is Landscape with Cattle (1661; London, Wallace Collection). A sense of space is created in the left half of the picture by the pattern of the trees and meandering, ribbon-like paths that diminish as they recede into the distance. Sunlight appears to fall naturally on fields and dunes, highlighting at strategic points the blond tones of the sand. By contrast, the right half of the picture builds up to a dense clump of trees reminiscent of those in van Ruisdael’s forest pictures of the mid-1650s. The staffage, almost certainly not by Wijnants, has been attributed to Adriaen van de Velde, who according to Houbraken was Wijnants’s pupil. This remains conjectural given Wijnants’s presumed birthdate, but there is no doubt that the two artists occasionally worked together.

During the mid-1660s Wijnants also painted the best of his Italianate landscapes, for example the Angler (1665; untraced), which find their closest parallel in the work of Jan Hackaert from the 1660s. Wijnants never travelled to Italy, however, and it is difficult to judge the date of his first and last Italianate works.

Wijnants’s later paintings are characterized by the frequent inclusion of a blasted elm or oak tree dominating the foreground. Two examples are the Hawking Party with a Falconer (1666; Buckingham, private collection, see Apollo, viii/45 (1928), p. 118), of which there is a signed replica (London, Kenwood House), and the somewhat later Landscape with Two Dead Trees (London, National Gallery). Highly stylized foliage and fallen tree-trunks are also common motifs in these later works, which suggest, in addition to the influence of van Ruisdael, that of such artists as Pynacker and Otto Marseus van Schrieck, both of whom were working in Amsterdam from around 1660.

Wijnants’s pictures appealed strongly to the 18th-century English collectors’ enthusiasm for Dutch landscapes. His paintings also influenced 18th- and 19th-century artists, including François Boucher, Thomas Gainsborough and John Crome; the latter is said to have had a painting by Wijnants in his collection. Perhaps it was the decorative, blue tonality of Wijnants’s works of the 1660s and 1670s that was preferred by artists and collectors alike to the restricted palette of earth tones used by landscape artists in the 1620s and 1630s during the so-called ‘tonal phase’ of 17th-century Dutch painting.

Collections:
Wijnant is represented in the following collections: National Gallery, London; Wallace Collection, London; Cleveland Museum of Art, Ohio; Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, amongst others.