Schepen in het ijs

About this work

You see wooden boats frozen in thick ice, their masts tall against a pale sky. Behind them, sleek steel steamships glide through open water, painted in thin, almost see-through layers. The painting shows two worlds side by side—old and new. The wooden boats look strong but stuck, while the modern ships move freely. The artist used thick, dark paint for the boats and lighter, softer strokes for the ships, making the contrast even sharper. If you like this quiet clash of old and new, look up impasto—a technique where paint is laid on thickly, like the boats here.