Artwork
Landscape with Riders
Landscape with Riders is an oil painting by the Rococo painting artist August Querfurt. It dates from 1750 and is held in the collection of the Städel Museum.
About this work
Overview
Created circa 1750, *Landscape with Riders* is a small copper painting by Austrian artist August Querfurt. The work presents a quiet countryside scene populated by three figures—a standing rider and two mounted men—accompanied by a dog. Muted tones and a cloudy sky give the composition a subdued atmosphere, while the copper support contributes to its distinctive surface texture.
Subject & Meaning
The image captures a brief moment of travel or a hunting sortie, with two horses of contrasting color—one white, one black—under the control of their riders, who wear period hats and attire. A solitary figure on foot stands nearby, suggesting a pause in the journey. The inclusion of a dog reinforces the hunting motif common in Querfurt’s oeuvre.
Technique & Style
Executed on copper, the painting benefits from the metal’s smoothness, allowing fine detailing of the riders’ clothing, the animals’ musculature, and the distant foliage. Querfurt’s handling reflects Rococo sensibilities: a light, airy composition with delicate brushwork, yet the subject matter—cavalry and landscape—draws from earlier Dutch and German battle painters, notably Philips Wouwerman.
History & Provenance
The work entered the collection of the Städel Museum in Frankfurt, where it remains on display. Its provenance prior to acquisition is not extensively documented, but it aligns with Querfurt’s productive period after his apprenticeship with his father and subsequent studies in Augsburg, during which he produced numerous equestrian scenes.
Context
Querfurt, active in the mid‑18th century, specialized in military and hunting scenes that appealed to aristocratic patrons.
Querfurt, active in the mid‑18th century, specialized in military and hunting scenes that appealed to aristocratic patrons. While the Rococo era favored decorative elegance, his paintings retained a narrative focus on movement and spectacle. *Landscape with Riders* exemplifies his synthesis of fashionable style with the traditional genre of cavalry landscape, bridging the decorative and the documentary.
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Artist & collection
Artist
August Querfurt (1696, Wolfenbüttel – 1761, Vienna) was an Austrian painter. He painted primarily soldiers and battle scenes. He was first instructed by his father, Tobias Querfurt, a landscape and animal painter, and…
