Dutch Moonlit River Landscape Painting by Jacobus Theodorus Abels (1803-66)

JACOBUS THEODORUS ABELS
Dutch, 1803-1866

A Moonlit River Landscape

18 1/4" H x 3 1/2" D x 22 1/4" W (framed)
11 5/8" H x 16" W (panel)

Oil on panel, signed lower left "Abels F.", presented in a giltwood composition frame with a brass artist's plaque.

A Dutch river landscape depicting moored sailing vessels along a quiet waterway before a small bridge, distant windmill and the moon just barely over the horizon with heavily underlit clouds while the darkness of night moves to fill the void of the weak reflected light.

Jacobus Theodorus Abels was born in Amsterdam in 1803 and studied under Jan van Ravenswaay and Pieter Gerardus van Os. Following a study trip to Germany in 1826, he worked in several Dutch cities, including The Hague, Haarlem and Arnhem. By the 1840s, he had become particularly recognized for his moonlit and evening landscapes, drawing inspiration from the seventeenth century painter Aert van der Neer. He was a member of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Amsterdam, and his work is represented in several Dutch museum collections, including the Rijksmuseum and Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen.

Condition: Very fine original condition. Carefully cleaned, with no noteworthy inpainting observed under ultraviolet examination. Light craquelure to the painted surface. The giltwood composition frame has restoration to two corners, later gilt touchups and minor chips and wear. Presents well. Ready to place.

ref. 601CPB28D