The Stop before the Inn 1643

Jan van Goyen made this painting, called "The Stop before the Inn," in the Netherlands, at a time when Dutch art was developing new genres such as landscape painting. Van Goyen offers here a low-lying prospect of daily life with its unassuming characters; a scene of common people outside an inn, and a ferry transporting people and livestock. His choice of subject matter reflects the growing importance of the merchant class, who found pride and status in the representation of their everyday surroundings. But while the scene is seemingly natural, it is important to remember that the cultural construction of ‘landscape’ is always selective. Van Goyen's choice of what to include and exclude, such as the absence of grand historical narratives, reflect social values and cultural priorities of the time. To fully appreciate this artwork, we can look into the artist's biography, the history of landscape painting, and the socio-economic context of 17th-century Netherlands. These resources provide valuable context for interpreting the artwork's meanings and significance.