Rivierlandschap met toren en hengelaar 1820

Barend Cornelis Koekkoek made this ink drawing, “River Landscape with Tower and Angler,” in the Netherlands. This tranquil scene is composed of ruins, trees, and a humble cottage. It evokes a sense of the past, a time before the Netherlands became a major economic power. Koekkoek creates a sense of Dutch national identity by drawing on the romantic associations of ruins, which were popular at the time. We might see this drawing as a conservative pushback against the rise of a wealthy merchant class. While the Netherlands was becoming increasingly urbanized and commercial, Koekkoek romanticized the countryside. It's worth investigating how Dutch art institutions, like the Rijksmuseum where this drawing now resides, shaped this national narrative by collecting and displaying similar artworks. As historians, we can examine the cultural and economic contexts in which this drawing was made to understand its deeper social meanings.