Adriaen van de Velde, ‘Bull Standing in Water’, ca. 1657/1659, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.

About Adriaen van de Velde

In his landscapes, Adriaen van de Velde placed emphasis not only on the natural setting and the light, but to the animals and human figures that populated his scenes. While he was best known for his depictions of sparkling light and hazy mists, van de Velde loved painting cattle scenes, influenced by his admiration for Paulus Potter. In fact, he was so successful at rendering figures that he was frequently called upon by other artists like Jacob van Ruisadel and Meindert Hobbema to add them to their compositions. Van de Velde was adept at etching and drawing in addition to painting, and variously produced religious works, domestic scenes, and portraits. Both his father and elder brother, Willem van de Velde the Elder and Younger, were also landscape and maritime painters.

Dutch, 1636-1672, Amsterdam, Netherlands, based in Amsterdam, Netherlands