The Water Mill 1610 - 1656

Jan van Goyen rendered "The Water Mill" with pen and brown ink, capturing a seemingly simple scene. Yet, look closer at the water wheel itself, a motif that churns through history. From ancient Roman engineering to medieval gristmills, the wheel symbolizes man's attempt to harness nature’s force. This struggle against entropy echoes in the broader history of art. Consider the wheel of Ixion, eternally bound as punishment, or the Buddhist Wheel of Dharma representing continuous rebirth and transformation. In van Goyen's image, the wheel may conjure something primal in our collective memory. Water, life's essence, combined with a wheel, a symbol of endless return. Is it not a visual echo of our mortality, constantly turning the cycle of existence? It’s this resonance, buried in symbols, that makes us return to art, again and again, seeking some reflection of our own timeless struggles.