J. Paul Getty Museum, Getty Center
July 24–October 28, 2018
During the seventeenth century, Dutch political and religious freedom as well as maritime trade and military strength ushered in an era of economic prosperity. In this golden age, artists inspired by the everyday made vast numbers of highly finished drawings. Masterful Likeness: Dutch Drawings of the Golden Age, on view July 24–October 28, 2018, at the J. Paul Getty Museum, brings together landscapes, topographical views, portraits, and scenes of daily life, underscoring Dutch artists’ masterful description of the world around them.
The seventeenth-century Dutch Republic’s art market flourished as members of a rising merchant class sought luxury goods to decorate their homes and assert their status. To meet the demands of these new patrons, Dutch artists not only produced paintings but created and sold drawings. Stimulated by the bounty brought to the Netherlands on mercantile ships and an emerging national pride, artists chronicled their observations and ideas. This exhibition presents their proud commemorations of Dutch places, people, and pastimes, revealing how drawings reflect and shape national identity.
In the Dutch Golden Age, a period defined by economic prosperity and political and religious freedom, the art market flourished. Praised for their artful portrayal of the world around them, Dutch artists in the seventeenth-century met the demand for luxury goods by creating vast numbers of highly finished drawings. This selection of landscapes, topographical views, portraits, and scenes of daily life showcase how drawings helped shaped the emerging national identity of the Dutch Republic.
“Dutch artists documented and invented their world masterfully. The same attention to detail seen in capturing the specific – portraits of burghers, panoramic views of cities – is also used to create more generic subjects of artful fantasy,” says Stephanie Schrader, Curator of Drawings and organizer of the exhibition.
Dutch masters, including Rembrandt van Rijn, Albert Cuyp, and Hendrick Avercamp, will be featured alongside recent acquisitions of drawings by Gerard ter Borch, Willem Buytewech, and Esaias van de Velde.
Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn (Dutch, 1606 - 1669)
Title/Date:
Nude Woman with a Snake, about 1637
Culture:
Dutch
Medium:
Red chalk with white gouache heightening
Dimensions:
24.7 × 13.7 cm (9 3/4 × 5 3/8 in.)
Accession No.
81.GB.27
Object Credit:
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn (Dutch, 1606 - 1669)
Title/Date:
Landscape with the House with the Little Tower, about 1651
Culture:
Dutch
Medium:
Pen and brown ink, brush and brown wash
Dimensions:
9.7 × 21.5 cm (3 13/16 × 8 7/16 in.)
Accession No.
83.GA.363
Object Credit:
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Joachim Anthonisz. Wtewael (Dutch, 1566 - 1638)
Title/Date:
Young Woman Assisted by a Gentleman, about 1609 - 1611
Culture:
Dutch
Medium:
Pen and black ink, gray wash, and white gouache heightening
Dimensions:
19.4 × 24.9 cm (7 5/8 × 9 13/16 in.)
Accession No.
85.GA.230
Object Credit:
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Aelbert Cuyp (Dutch, 1620 - 1691)
Title/Date:
A Milkmaid, about 1642 - 1646
Culture:
Dutch
Medium:
Black chalk, graphite, gray wash
Dimensions:
12.1 × 14.8 cm (4 3/4 × 5 13/16 in.)
Accession No.
86.GG.672
Object Credit:
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
David Bailly (Dutch, 1584 - 1657)
Title/Date:
Portrait of a Woman, 1629
Culture:
Dutch
Medium:
Pen and light and dark brown ink; framing line in dark brown ink; pupils
incised by the artist
Dimensions:
Diam.: 12.9 cm (Diam.: 5 1/16 in.)
Accession No.
87.GA.40
Object Credit:
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Herman Saftleven the Younger (Dutch, 1609 - 1685)
Title/Date:
A Young Herdsman Leaning on his "Houlette", about 1650
Culture:
Dutch
Medium:
Black chalk and brown wash
Dimensions:
27.5 × 18.6 cm (10 13/16 × 7 5/16 in.)
Accession No.
2001.40
Object Credit:
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Cornelis Visscher (Dutch, about 1629 - 1658)
Title/Date:
Portrait of a Woman, 1658
Culture:
Dutch
Medium:
Black chalk
Dimensions:
20.3 × 17.8 cm (8 × 7 in.)
Accession No.
2004.57
Object Credit:
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Hendrick Avercamp (Dutch, 1585 - 1634)
Title/Date:
A Winter Scene with Two Gentlemen Playing Colf, about 1615 - 1620
Culture:
Dutch
Medium:
Opaque watercolor with pen and brown ink
Dimensions:
9.4 × 15.6 cm (3 11/16 × 6 1/8 in.)
Accession No.
2008.13
Object Credit:
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Abraham Rutgers (Dutch, 1632 - 1699)
Title/Date:
A Street in Jisp on a Winter's Day, before 1664
Culture:
Dutch
Medium:
Pen and brown and black ink and brown and gray wash
Dimensions:
19.3 × 30.6 cm (7 5/8 × 12 1/16 in.)
Accession No.
2008.18
Object Credit:
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Adriaen van Ostade (Dutch, 1610 - 1685)
Title/Date:
Peasants Drinking in a Tavern, early 1640s
Culture:
Dutch
Medium:
Pen and brown ink and wash over black chalk
Dimensions:
11 × 14.8 cm (4 5/16 × 5 13/16 in.)
Accession No.
2011.32
Object Credit:
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Herman Saftleven the Younger (Dutch, 1609 - 1685)
Title/Date:
The Corner of the Bulwark at Utrecht, 1650s
Culture:
Dutch
Medium:
Black chalk and brown wash
Dimensions:
10.8 × 15.4 cm (4 1/4 × 6 1/16 in.)
Accession No.
2011.33
Object Credit:
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Jan de Bisschop (Dutch, 1628 - 1671)
Title/Date:
The Valkenburg Ferry Boat, 1655 - 1660
Culture:
Dutch
Medium:
Pen and brown ink and brown and grey wash over traces of black chalk
Dimensions:
9.5 × 15.9 cm (3 3/4 × 6 1/4 in.)
Accession No.
2011.28.3
Object Credit:
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles