Jan van de Cappelle, 'Vessels Moored off a Jetty', probably 1650-60

The sense of activity on the boats and the jetty give a greater sense of movement than in many of Jan van de Cappelle's paintings. But, as is usual, the sea is flat and calm, giving subtle reflections of the vessels, the clouds and two porpoises swimming calmly on the left.

The pilings by the jetty and closer to us, blackened and dripping with weed, give a sense of age and permanence, almost as if van de Cappelle’s vision of the sea as calm and unthreatening is true. The geometry of their shapes, heavy and firm, is repeated – but with finer, cobwebby lines – by the masts, booms and ropes of the two vessels beyond them.

Sadly the condition of the painting prevents us from seeing the full misty atmosphere the artist intended to evoke through his subtle handling of the colours – but if you would like to see more of his work, look at A River Scene with Dutch Vessels Becalmed and A River Scene with a Large Ferry and Numerous Dutch Vessels at Anchor.