Johan Barthold Jongkind (Dutch, 1819-1891)

The present lot is a fine example of the Johan Jongkind's early and more Romantic work. The artist grew up in Holland around the small village of Maassluis with its many waterways and boats so it is no surprise that he would look to his native water-dominated landscape for inspiration.

In 1837 Jongkind enrolled at the Drawing Academy in The Hague where he met and was taught by Andreas Schelfhout (1787-1870), whose romanticism had a profound effect on Jongkind's early work.
Schelfhout introduced Jongkind to Eugène Isabey (1803-1886) and in 1846 Jongkind accompanied Isabey to Normandy, which marked a turning point in his artistic career. Eventually his rendering of fleeting effects of light and reflections, already very evident in the present lot, would make him a true pioneer of Impressionism.