Cottages with Haystack by a Muddy Track

Jan Josephsz. van Goyen found his subjects on walking-tours through the northern and southern Netherlands, making rapid sketches for later elaboration as paintings. He worked in Haarlem until 1618, attaining mastery by rendering modest, unspectacular motifs; his standard repertoire consisted of dunes under a lofty sky, sunlight breaking through clouds, gnarled oaks bent by wind and weather, and tiny human staffage figures on rough, sandy roads. The enthusiasm that met his work was linked to a certain glorification of rural life by contemporary writers and scholars, together with the demand for landscape painting that was “close to nature”.
From 1628, van Goyen began painting the Dutch landscape using a palette of earthy pigments for hundreds of variations depicting the flat countryside.
This painting, dated 1632, is characteristic of his more mature work, constructed with only a few shades of colour and flowing, masterly brushwork, more sketched than elaborated over much of the picture. A slight blue nuance in the grey-brown tonality makes for a cool overall effect. The freely sketched under-drawing is clearly recognisable with the naked eye. This style of almost monochrome mood painting, which could be carried out quickly, reached its height around 1640.

OEHRING Erika: Goyen Jan Josephsz. van, Cottages with Haystack by a Muddy Track, in: DUCKE Astrid, HABERSATTER Thomas, OEHRING Erika: Masterworks. Residenzgalerie Salzburg. Salzburg 2015, p. 42