Rotsachtige rivieroever, met op de achtergrond enkele huizen 1818 - 1865

Petrus Johannes Schotel created this watercolor, ‘Rocky Riverbank, with some Houses in the Background,’ likely sometime in the mid-19th century. It is easy to see why the painting is in the Rijksmuseum, Holland’s state museum, for it depicts a characteristically Dutch scene of a coastal landscape. The lack of grandeur in the scene may reflect the relative decline of Dutch power in this period. The artist has paid close attention to the geography of the shoreline, portraying the effects of erosion. He includes houses in the background, reminding us of the encroachment of human habitation on the natural world. We can investigate the social and institutional history of this painting by asking questions about the relationship between the artist, the market, and the museum. What did it mean to represent the Netherlands in this way? What did Dutch patrons expect of landscape painters? These questions, along with careful visual analysis, can help us better understand the role of art in 19th-century Dutch society.