Willem van de Velde II (Leiden 1633-1707 London) and Studio

Arguably the most famous marine artist of the second half of the seventeenth century, Willem van de Velde II was the son of the celebrated painter Willem van de Velde I. Willem II moved in circa 1648 to Weesp to study under Simon de Vlieger, whose sombre and atmospheric seascapes were a crucial influence on his previous experience of his father's more academic tradition. Back in Amsterdam by 1652, Willem II took up work in his father's studio, where his prodigious artistic talent rapidly became clear, with many of his celebrated calm scenes painted while he was still in his twenties.

Although Willem II did not make a regular practice of sailing with the Dutch or the English fleets - the only action of the Anglo-Dutch wars that he is likely to have witnessed was the Four Days' Battle of Dunkirk in 1666 - he was able to use his experience in conjunction with his father's sketches, from which the majority of his paintings were worked up, depicting with remarkable accuracy the working of ships at sea.

For another example of a work by the artist, see lot 151.