Boslandschap 1605 - 1673

Lucas van Uden created this landscape drawing with pen in brown, brush in gray, and blue watercolor. The composition, with its subtle tonal gradations, invites the viewer into a serenely shadowed wood. The structure of the artwork is defined by a rhythmic play of verticals and horizontals: slender trees reach skyward, countered by the earth’s horizontal expanse. This structured composition evokes a sense of a forest's organic vitality, carefully observed and delicately rendered. Van Uden seems to understand the forest not merely as a backdrop, but as a structured space, organized by the interplay of natural forms. Consider how the artist uses light and shadow to articulate the three-dimensionality of the forest floor, with the trees acting almost as pillars that define and measure this space. This gives the scene a measured, almost architectural quality, contrasting with the wilderness it depicts. This deliberate composition, combined with a muted palette, invites contemplation on the relationship between nature and its representation.