Jacob van Ruisdael - The Mill at Wijk-bij-Duurstede [c.1670]

Jacob van Ruisdael - The Mill at Wijk-bij-Duurstede [c.1670], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

Dark clouds are gathering above this river landscape. The sunlight occasionally penetrates the clouds, casting a dramatic light upon the mill towering above all else. The buildings in the background are the castle and St Maarten's Church of Wijk-bij-Duurstede. The river in the foreground is the river Lek. Jacob van Ruisdael was one of the most famous painters of wind and water mills in the seventeenth century. This painting depicts an utterly Dutch landscape: flat, lots of water, sky and mills.

There is some discussion about the state of the weather in this painting. The threatening clouds do not correspond with other parts of the painting. For instance, the mill's sails indicate there is little wind. The sails on the boat are also slack, as though there is no wind. Yet the dark bank of clouds suggests a strong wind and that it will soon pour down with rain. It is quite probable that this painting will never be fathomed. Certainly Ruisdael did not paint this picture on the spot, since this was not common practice at the time. He made the painting in his studio, perhaps only then adding the dramatic clouds to the sky.