Artwork
Enjoying the ice
Enjoying the ice is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Hendrick Avercamp. It dates from 1617 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
Technique & Style
The work was painted on a wooden panel using oil paint, a technique typical of early Dutch landscape painting.
The work was painted on a wooden panel using oil paint, a technique typical of early Dutch landscape painting. Avercamp's handling of light and atmospheric detail emphasizes the frozen surface and frozen figures, while the composition balances meticulous detail with a broad spatial vista. The surface condition remains stable, showing only minor craquelure consistent with age, and the painting is displayed without significant restoration interventions.
History & Provenance
Hendrick Avercamp painted Enjoying the ice in 1617, an oil work on panel measuring 37.5 cm by 25.4 cm, as documented in the Rijksmuseum collection where it remains today. The painting entered the museum's holdings as part of the acquisition of SK-A-3247, establishing its provenance within the institution's collection. Its creation aligns with Avercamp's activity in the early 17th century Dutch landscape tradition, reflecting his focus on winter scenes rendered in oil.
Enjoying the Ice is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. The work is catalogued under the museum's inventory designation SK-A-3247. Both the institutional collection record and the painting's Wikidata entry confirm its location at the Rijksmuseum.
The sources provided do not document any specific exhibition history for the work.
Overview
Hendrick Avercamp’s 1617 oil painting, Enjoying the ice, presents a bustling winter scene on a frozen river in the Dutch countryside. The composition is filled with figures skating, sliding, and conversing, while distant ships lie trapped in ice near a modest town marked by spires and flags. A pink‑orange sky crowns the tableau, and leafless trees line the banks, framing the lively activity.
Subject & Meaning
The work captures a moment of communal leisure in early‑seventeenth‑century Netherlands, emphasizing the social importance of ice skating as both sport and pastime. By populating the landscape with numerous individuals in warm coats, Avercamp highlights the collective enjoyment of the harsh winter, suggesting a shared resilience and festive spirit among townspeople.
Context
Winter landscapes were a distinctive genre in the Netherlands, where frozen canals and rivers became venues for public recreation. Avercamp, sometimes called the “Dutch Bruegel,” contributed to this tradition by documenting everyday activities with a level of detail that provides valuable insight into 17th‑century social customs and urban environments.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Hendrick Avercamp (January 27, 1585 (bapt.) – May 15, 1634 (buried)) was a Dutch painter during the Dutch Golden Age of painting.
