Artwork
Portrait of a couple with their child in a landscape
Portrait of a couple with their child in a landscape is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Herman Doncker. It dates from 1650 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
Technique & Style
The composition formally depicts a couple accompanied by their child within an outdoor setting, blending domestic portraiture with scenic background details.
Created in 1650, this work by Herman Doncker is executed in oil paint on a canvas support. The painting measures 68.5 cm in height and 57.5 cm in width, presenting a portrait genre that integrates landscape elements. The composition formally depicts a couple accompanied by their child within an outdoor setting, blending domestic portraiture with scenic background details.
As a mid-17th-century oil on canvas, the piece reflects the material standards of Dutch portraiture from that period.
History & Provenance
Herman Doncker created the oil painting Portrait of a couple with their child in a landscape in 1650. The work was executed on canvas and depicts a family group set within a landscape. Regarding its ownership history, the painting was part of the collection formed by Adriaan van der Hoop. This collection subsequently became associated with both the Rijksmuseum and the Amsterdam Museum in Amsterdam.
Portrait of a couple with their child in a landscape is an oil painting on canvas attributed to Herman Doncker and dated to 1650. It measures 68.5 cm in height and 57.5 cm in width. The work belongs to the collection of Adriaan van der Hoop and is part of the holdings of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, where it has been displayed in exhibitions of Dutch Golden Age portraiture.
Overview
Herman Doncker, a Dutch painter active in Haarlem during the mid‑17th century, executed this oil painting around 1650. The work portrays a family of three positioned before a ruinous architectural backdrop, and it is part of the Rijksmuseum’s collection.
Subject & Meaning
The central figures consist of a man in black attire with a white collar, a similarly dressed woman, and their child in an elaborate gown. The family stands together, the child’s hand linked to the mother’s, suggesting domestic unity against the decaying structure behind them.
Context
The inclusion of a ruined building with a tower and fountain reflects a common 17th‑century Dutch motif linking personal portraiture to broader themes of transience and the passage of time, set within a modestly detailed natural landscape.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Herman Meindertsz. Doncker (c. 1600 – c. 1666), was a Dutch Golden Age painter. He worked in Haarlem during the years 1633–1640, and signed his works 'H. Doncker', or 'HD'. He dated portraits from 1627–1640. He painted…
