Landschap met molen te Lienden Possibly 1866 - 1922

Willem Cornelis Rip sketched this landscape with a mill in Lienden using pencil on paper. Rip, who lived from 1856 to 1922, was part of a generation that saw rapid industrialization transform the Dutch landscape. Rip’s choice to depict a windmill, a symbol of traditional Dutch life, can be seen as both an aesthetic preference and a cultural statement. In the late 19th century, the Netherlands was grappling with questions of national identity amidst modernization. Artists like Rip, often from privileged backgrounds, were turning to rural scenes for inspiration. This idealization of the countryside was not shared by the working class, who faced hardships and displacement due to economic changes. The quick, almost fleeting quality of the sketch invites us to consider the artist's own position in this changing landscape, one of observation rather than immersion. What does it mean to sketch a landscape that is quickly disappearing?