Rhine Landscape
This small painting on copper joined the collection in 1989 – the same year as Joachim Antonisz. Wtewael’s Holy Family with Angels and Saints, the last picture by an Old Master to join the Palacio de Villahermosa holdings. Herman Saftleven, who may have trained with his father Herman Saftleven the Elder and his older brother Cornelis, was a famous painter and engraver who specialised in river landscapes and topographical views, among other subjects. In 1632 he moved to the city of Utrecht and lived there for the rest of his life except for a trip to Basel, during which he visited various places along the Rhine and Moselle rivers. This interesting landscape, in which the artist captures the surroundings the Rhine where groups of tiny countryfolk toil the land, may have been painted from sketches he made along the way. The harmonious colours, with balanced interplays of greens, blues, and chestnuts, attest to his skill.