Adam Pynacker
View of a Harbor in Schiedam1650-1653

On view:

Geffen Galleries

Oil painting of a Dutch canal scene with a wooden drawbridge, a loaded boat near the muddy bank, figures on the quayside, and a tall sailing vessel with flags beyond

Artist or Maker: Adam Pynacker
Northern Netherlands, circa 1620/21-1673
Title: View of a Harbor in Schiedam
Date Made: 1650-1653
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: Canvas: 21 3/4 × 17 7/8 in. (55.25 × 45.4 cm) Framed: 28 × 24 × 2 in. (71.12 × 60.96 × 5.08 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Edward William Carter
Accession Number: M.2009.106.11
Classification: Paintings
Collecting Area: European Painting and Sculpture
Curatorial Notes: This tranquil slice-of-life painting depicts a wood drawbridge that once linked the Korte and Lange canals in the town of Schiedam, a river port west of Rotterdam. The scene is backlit with golden light that casts long shadows, suggesting early morning at sunrise. At the left, a man reads to a group of men, women, and children, while a well-dressed gentleman and a sailor converse in the foreground next to a rowboat that is used to guide merchant ships to port. The sails of one such vessel tower above the buildings in the background, a reminder of the economic lifeblood of this port town.

Pynacker’s father was a prosperous Schiedam merchant who owned multiple ships and traded herring, wheat, and wine. It is thought that the artist was involved in the business as well, giving him an intimate knowledge that might have informed works such as this one. The painting is a rare example in Pynacker’s oeuvre of a quotidian urban scene, and a departure from his majestic land- and riverscapes inspired by the Italianate compositions of Jan Both. Here, the recognizable location and authentic detail likely appealed to locals and tourists alike.
Provenance: Private collection, France, sold by 1972 to;(1) [Frederick Mont, New York, sold 1974 through];(2) [Newhouse Galleries, New York, to]; Mr. and Mrs. Edward William Carter, Los Angeles, given 2009 to; LACMA.

Footnotes

(1) When acquired, the painting had a brass nameplate that included the number 21. The collection has not been identified.

(2) In a letter to Wolfgang Stechow, 16 January 1973 (Pynacker object file, Department of European Painting and Sculpture, LACMA), Betty Mont informed him that Mr. Carter had bought the painting by Pynacker without hesitating a minute, and that the old Mr. Newhouse had sold him the painting. She concluded saying she was pleased that Carter, who is a serious collector, purchased it, but is sorry that Sherman Lee (director of the Cleveland Museum of Art for whom presumably Stechow was inquiring) was too late. The painting had been reserved for Mr. Carter for a long time. The receipt for the final payment of the painting is dated 17 January 1974. Mont often worked in partnership with Newhouse.
Selected Bibliography: van Suchtelen, Ariane, and Arthur K. Wheelock, Jr. Dutch Cityscapes of the Golden Age. Zwolle: Waanders Publishers, 2008.
Walsh, Jr., John., and Cynthis P. Schneider. A Mirror of Nature: Dutch Paintings from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Edward William Carter (Second Edition). Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1992.
Harwood, Laurie B. A Golden Harvest: Paintings by Adam Pynacker. Williamstown: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1994.
Harwood, Laurie B. Adam Pynacker, c. 1620-1673. Doornspijk: Davaco, 1988.
Harwood, Laurie B. Reflections on Italy: Adam Pynacker. London: Richard L. Feigen & Co., 1991.
Duparc, Frederik J., and Linda L. Graif. Italian Recollections: Dutch Painters of the Golden Age. Montreal: Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, 1990.
Beer, Gerlinde de. The Golden Age of Dutch Marine Painting: The Inder Rieden Collection. Vol. 3. Leiden: Primavera Pres, 2019.
Walsh, Amy L. The Mr. and Mrs. Edward Carter Collection of Dutch Paintings. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2019. https://archive.org/details/Carter_Collection_Dutch_Paintings (accessed May 23, 2022).

Adam Pynacker
View of a Harbor in Schiedam1650-1653

On view:

Geffen Galleries

Artist or Maker: Adam Pynacker
Northern Netherlands, circa 1620/21-1673
Title: View of a Harbor in Schiedam
Date Made: 1650-1653
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: Canvas: 21 3/4 × 17 7/8 in. (55.25 × 45.4 cm) Framed: 28 × 24 × 2 in. (71.12 × 60.96 × 5.08 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Edward William Carter
Accession Number: M.2009.106.11
Classification: Paintings
Collecting Area: European Painting and Sculpture
Curatorial Notes: This tranquil slice-of-life painting depicts a wood drawbridge that once linked the Korte and Lange canals in the town of Schiedam, a river port west of Rotterdam. The scene is backlit with golden light that casts long shadows, suggesting early morning at sunrise. At the left, a man reads to a group of men, women, and children, while a well-dressed gentleman and a sailor converse in the foreground next to a rowboat that is used to guide merchant ships to port. The sails of one such vessel tower above the buildings in the background, a reminder of the economic lifeblood of this port town.

Pynacker’s father was a prosperous Schiedam merchant who owned multiple ships and traded herring, wheat, and wine. It is thought that the artist was involved in the business as well, giving him an intimate knowledge that might have informed works such as this one. The painting is a rare example in Pynacker’s oeuvre of a quotidian urban scene, and a departure from his majestic land- and riverscapes inspired by the Italianate compositions of Jan Both. Here, the recognizable location and authentic detail likely appealed to locals and tourists alike.
Provenance: Private collection, France, sold by 1972 to;(1) [Frederick Mont, New York, sold 1974 through];(2) [Newhouse Galleries, New York, to]; Mr. and Mrs. Edward William Carter, Los Angeles, given 2009 to; LACMA.

Footnotes

(1) When acquired, the painting had a brass nameplate that included the number 21. The collection has not been identified.

(2) In a letter to Wolfgang Stechow, 16 January 1973 (Pynacker object file, Department of European Painting and Sculpture, LACMA), Betty Mont informed him that Mr. Carter had bought the painting by Pynacker without hesitating a minute, and that the old Mr. Newhouse had sold him the painting. She concluded saying she was pleased that Carter, who is a serious collector, purchased it, but is sorry that Sherman Lee (director of the Cleveland Museum of Art for whom presumably Stechow was inquiring) was too late. The painting had been reserved for Mr. Carter for a long time. The receipt for the final payment of the painting is dated 17 January 1974. Mont often worked in partnership with Newhouse.
Selected Bibliography: van Suchtelen, Ariane, and Arthur K. Wheelock, Jr. Dutch Cityscapes of the Golden Age. Zwolle: Waanders Publishers, 2008.
Walsh, Jr., John., and Cynthis P. Schneider. A Mirror of Nature: Dutch Paintings from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Edward William Carter (Second Edition). Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1992.
Harwood, Laurie B. A Golden Harvest: Paintings by Adam Pynacker. Williamstown: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1994.
Harwood, Laurie B. Adam Pynacker, c. 1620-1673. Doornspijk: Davaco, 1988.
Harwood, Laurie B. Reflections on Italy: Adam Pynacker. London: Richard L. Feigen & Co., 1991.
Duparc, Frederik J., and Linda L. Graif. Italian Recollections: Dutch Painters of the Golden Age. Montreal: Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, 1990.
Beer, Gerlinde de. The Golden Age of Dutch Marine Painting: The Inder Rieden Collection. Vol. 3. Leiden: Primavera Pres, 2019.
Walsh, Amy L. The Mr. and Mrs. Edward Carter Collection of Dutch Paintings. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2019. https://archive.org/details/Carter_Collection_Dutch_Paintings (accessed May 23, 2022).