Huis met een rietendak 1615 - 1655

Lodewijk de Vadder created this etching of a thatched house in the Low Countries in the 17th century. The image presents us with a tranquil scene, but what does it tell us about the cultural values of the time? The appeal of landscape art in the Netherlands was bound up with a rising sense of national identity. After achieving independence from Spain, Dutch artists turned to local scenery as a celebration of their homeland. Look at how the composition gives prominence to ordinary rural motifs: the dirt track, the overgrown thicket and the modest dwelling. Artists like de Vadder were responding to the demands of a new art market, one dominated by a wealthy merchant class rather than the church or aristocracy. By studying estate records, domestic inventories, and other archival sources, the art historian can illuminate the relationship between artistic production and broader patterns of social and economic life.