Artwork
Three Goats at the River
Three Goats at the River is an ink print by the Baroque artist Allart van Everdingen. It dates from 1650 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
Created circa 1650 by Dutch artist Allart van Everdingen, this print is an etching that exemplifies his focus on rural scenery. The composition centers on three goats drinking at a riverbank, framed by a modest wooden house perched on a slope and surrounded by trees and low vegetation. The work reflects the tranquil, everyday moments that van Everdingen often rendered in his landscape prints.
Subject & Meaning
The scene presents a quiet moment in a pastoral setting: the goats, rendered in careful detail, pause at the water’s edge while a modest dwelling and a canopy of trees suggest a lived-in countryside. The inclusion of domestic architecture alongside wildlife underscores the harmonious relationship between human habitation and nature, a common theme in 17th‑century Dutch landscape art.
Technique & Style
This contrast between dense and delicate line work typifies the period’s approach to rendering natural environments in print.
Van Everdingen employs the etching process, using fine, intersecting lines to model form and convey depth. The trees and house are delineated with denser hatching, giving them a solid presence, while the sky is treated with lighter, wispy strokes that create an airy atmosphere. This contrast between dense and delicate line work typifies the period’s approach to rendering natural environments in print.
History & Provenance
The print belongs to van Everdingen’s body of work produced during the Dutch Golden Age, a time when printmaking flourished as a means of disseminating landscape imagery. While specific ownership records for this particular impression are scarce, the piece is catalogued among his known etchings and has been referenced in scholarly surveys of 17th‑century Dutch prints.
Artist & collection
Artist
Allaert van Everdingen (Dutch pronunciation: ; bapt. 18 June 1621 – 8 November 1675 (buried)), was a Dutch Golden Age painter and printmaker in etching and mezzotint.
