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Willem Maris, 'Ducks alighting on a Pool', about 1885

About the work

Overview

Willem Maris trained at the Hague Drawing Academy, as did his two older brothers, Jacob and Matthijs, who were also artists. His paintings are of traditional Dutch subjects – particularly animals and landscapes – but painted in a lyrical manner that, in his later work, comes close to French Impressionism. His favourite motifs were cattle, and later ducks and chickens, in meadows or landscapes that typically include willow trees and also ponds, canals and rivers.

In this small painting we see a duck pond near the artist’s home at Voorburg. The sparse foliage and pale sky suggest it is winter or early spring. A mallard in full blue-green head plumage approaches a white duck that is perhaps about to alight on the water. Maris has created an atmospheric scene using a mesh of delicate brushstrokes and by limiting his principal colours to cool grey-greens and olive-browns.

Key facts

Details

Full title
Ducks alighting on a Pool
Artist
Willem Maris
Artist dates
1844 - 1910
Date made
about 1885
Medium and support
oil on canvas
Dimensions
32.4 × 20.3 cm
Inscription summary
Signed
Acquisition credit
Presented by J.C.J. Drucker, 1912
Inventory number
NG2875
Location
Not on display
Collection
Main Collection

About this record

If you know more about this painting or have spotted an error, please contact us. Please note that exhibition histories are listed from 2009 onwards. Bibliographies may not be complete; more comprehensive information is available in the National Gallery Library.

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