Figuren op een boot 1890 - 1946

Cornelis Vreedenburgh sketched "Figuren op een boot," and here we see figures rendered with swift, deliberate strokes, evoking a sense of transient life upon the water. Observe the smoking figure: this motif recurs throughout art history. Consider the Dutch Golden Age, where pipe-smokers often symbolized leisure, contemplation, or even transience. Here, the act of smoking gains a similar complexity. This simple sketch allows us to reflect on the ever-shifting meanings of everyday gestures and symbols, and how they resurface, evolve, and take on new shades of meaning in different historical contexts.