Willem van de Velde the Younger (Dutch 1633-1707)

Willem van de Velde the Younger (Dutch 1633-1707)
Men-o-war becalmed offshore and drying their sails, with seafaring folk working on the beach
Indistinctly signed W. V Ve**** (lower right)
Oil on canvas
31.8 x 51.5cm; 12½ x 20¼in

Provenance:
Possibly Edward Rudge (1763-1846) and by descent;
John Edward Rudge (1903-1970);
And by descent

The present work is an important and exciting addition to the ouevre of Willem van de Velde the Younger. Until its recent discovery in a private collection its existence was merely conjecture. In his catalogue raisonné of the paintings of the Elder and Younger Willem van de Velde, Michael S. Robinson included a painting in a private Dutch collection, that is almost identical in composition to the right-hand side of our work, (see M. Robinson, Van de Velde: a catalogue of the paintings of the elder and the younger Willem van de Velde (London, 1990, p.701, no.695). According to Robinson the Dutch work was "Painted perhaps partly by the Younger, c.1685'. The unusual upright format of the Dutch painting (26.7 x 21.5cm), and the fact that the principal vessel was unusually large in the foreground, led Robinson to suggest that 'the possibility must exist that the galliot is cut from a larger picture'.

The emergence of our painting demonstrates that Robinson's hypothesis was correct, but our work shows a more elaborate and balanced version of the composition. The complete painting shows all the characteristics of the way van de Velde constructed his compositions. Firstly there is the low horizon, customary in van de Velde’s marine paintings. The main elements of the picture, the group of warships on the left and the inland vessel on the right, are prominently displayed. The middle section offers an almost empty vista of the horizon. The spit of land in the foreground, furnished with several men, is also a typical element of the calm coastal views in which van de Velde excelled. Besides the composition, this canvas shows an important characteristic of the artist, namely the subtle way the sails are lit up by the sun, especially on the warship on the left.

The rounded letters of the signature suggests that our work dates from van de Velde's English period, as opposed to the more angular letters of his Dutch period, when he signed in the same way as his father. Although it is not dated, it was probably painted c.1680-1685. The fact that it is signed indicates that he considered it a finished work, and the excellent execution and the format makes it clear that he produced the painting entirely by himself, without any help from studio assistants. It is also notable that van de Velde has worked in a slightly loose hand, and raises the possibility that it may be an oil sketch or a modello for a larger canvas. The 'half-canvas' that Robinson illustrates might have been a studio repetition. A comparable work to our painting is in the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich (no.ZBA2145), similar in size, composition and execution.

Our work has passed by descent to the present owner from the collection of John Edward Rudge (1903-1970). Rudge's ancestor Edward Rudge (1763-1846) (Lugt 900), had assembled a superb collection of Old Master prints which were sold at Christie's in 1924. It seems likely therefore that the present work was also originally purchased by Edward.

We are grateful to Dr. Remmelt Daalder for confirming the attribution of the present work to Willem van de Velde the Younger, on the basis of photographs.