Artwork
Water Meadows on the River IJssel
Water Meadows on the River IJssel is an oil painting by the Barbizon school artist Willem Roelofs. It dates from 1850 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The landscape depicts a tranquil riverside scene on the IJssel with a prominent tree standing near the water's edge, reflecting the Dutch emphasis on naturalistic observation and the 19th-century Romantic fascination with untouched countryside. The composition conveys a sense of peaceful rural life through its careful rendering of light on the river and the solitary tree as a natural landmark, symbolizing stability amid the changing agricultural landscape of the Netherlands. The work was painted en plein air in the Netherlands and later entered the Rijksmuseum collection, where it remains part of the national narrative of Dutch landscape art.
Technique & Style
Water Meadows on the River IJssel is a landscape painting executed in oil paint on a canvas support. The artwork measures 27.2 by 44 centimeters. Created in the Netherlands, the composition stylistically belongs to the landscape genre and formally depicts a tree within its water meadow setting along the river.
History & Provenance
The sources do not provide further information about a commission, prior owners, or intermediate steps in the ownership chain leading to the museum's holdings.
Water Meadows on the River IJssel was created by Willem Roelofs in 1850, executed in oil paint on canvas as a landscape work depicting a tree by the river.
The painting is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum, where it is currently located. The sources do not provide further information about a commission, prior owners, or intermediate steps in the ownership chain leading to the museum's holdings.
No additional dating or creation-history details beyond the 1850 inception are recorded in the available material.
Overview
Created circa 1850, Water Meadows on the River IJssel is an oil painting by Dutch artist Willem Roelofs. The work presents a calm river scene framed by a meadow and overhanging trees, rendered in a muted palette that emphasizes the gentle atmosphere of the landscape. It is part of the Rijksmuseum’s collection.
Context
The painting reflects the broader shift in Dutch art during the 1850s toward realism and direct observation of the countryside. Roelofs’ adoption of Barbizon principles, emphasizing natural light, atmospheric effects, and modest subject matter, mirrored contemporary European trends and helped reshape Dutch landscape painting.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Willem Roelofs (10 March 1822 – 12 May 1897) was a Dutch painter, water-colourist, etcher, lithographer and draughtsman.
