"A Dutch Homestead" (1884) | Joseph Jansen

JOSEPH JANSEN
German, 1829-1905

"A Dutch Homestead" (1884)

Oil on canvas | signed lower right "J. Jos. Jansen 1884" | Frost & Reed label verso with title

Item # 308EPG23Z  An exceedingly good example of Jansen's ability to compose a pleasantly balanced scene, the present depiction of a rural homestead is an exacting work with extraordinary attention to detail. His clouds are riveting, these puffy white abstractions a stark contrast against the brilliant hues of the sky. These blues are a fine gradient into the horizon, where hints of gold emanate from the horizon as the sun begins to set behind the trees in the distance. A solitary woman walks along the heavily worn dirt path, two buckets of water balanced on a staff across her shoulders as she makes her way back from the tranquil brook to her rural homestead. JOSEPH JANSEN
Born on July 20th of 1829 in Aachen, he moved to Düsseldorf at the age of 17 and would spend the rest of his life based there. After studying at the Akademie of Fine Arts in Düsseldorf, he subsequently trained at the Schirmers School with an almost total emphasis on Romantic landscapes. He began travelling extensively throughout Germany, painting the mountains and valleys of his homeland as well as scenes throughout Switzerland. His early work featured the towns and scenery along the Moselle and the Rhine, but he began traveling throughout Berne and into the Bavarian Mountains for later work, producing sketches that he would continue to gain inspiration from late into his career. He became famous for his sweeping views of the Alps, but it was his ability to capture even the smallest details with inordinate accuracy, his palette of vivid and brilliant color combinations and his ability to combine complex elements into grand-scale canvases that made him one of the best landscape painters of his day.

He began exhibiting in the 1850s, first at galleries before showing his work at the Berlin Akademie starting in 1870 and in Vienna starting in 1872. His 1880 grand scale landscape of "Oschinen-See" was acquired by Kaiser Wilhelm I and his landscape "The Jungfrau" was acquired by the Cincinnati Museum. His work has remained incredibly popular on both sides of the Atlantic.

Some results include his "Alpine Waters", which sold with Sotheby's in New York for $ 25,000 in 2017; "Blick auf den Vierwaldstättersee" achieved 19,820 euros in 2012 at Dorotheum; his 1895 example of "Village by the Stream" sold in 2009 for 21,000 PLN (approx. $ 7700 USD) at Agra-Art; "Waterfall in an Alpine Landscape" of 1898 sold for $ 10,625 at Christie's, New York in 2008; the mountainscape of "Wanderer auf einer Brücke im Hochgebirge" sold at Dorotheum in 2000 for the equivalent of $ 15,565 USD; the large scale work of "Motive aus dem Chamonix Thale in der Schweiz" of 1890 sold for $ 20,700 at Butterfield's in 1994; "Shepherds in a Landscape" sold in New York at Sotheby's for $ 11,000 USD in 1989; a small canvas titled "Summer Landscape on the Mosel" dated 1860 sold for the equivalent of $ 8918 USD when offered at Christie's, London in 1986. Artist Listings & Bibliography: E. Benezit Dictionary of Artists, Vol. VII, Gründ, 2006, p. 740
Measurements: 19 5/8" H x 26 1/4" W [canvas]; 25 1/4" H x 31 3/4" W x 2 1/8" D [canvas] Condition Report:
A very fine presentation. Conserved in 2008 and presenting with a brilliant surface; under UV showing trace inpainting to the extreme edges of the painting where the frame rubs; the recent varnish flares under UV and somewhat obscures the surface from examination; canvas with minor craquelure, remaining tight and well preserved. Old frame with extensive wear, remaining a fine presentation.