A COOL ESCAPE ON A HOT SUMMER’S DAY
When it's 90 degrees outside and the sidewalks seem to radiate heat, there's something especially refreshing about looking at a Dutch winter landscape. You can almost feel the crisp air, hear the crunch of ice under your feet, and essentially forget that it's the middle of summer.
That is exactly what these two 17th century paintings offer. They both take us into the heart of a Dutch winter, but they tell two completely different stories. One gives us a quiet, reflective moment, and the other throws us into the middle of a busy day on the ice.
Jan van de Cappelle's A Winter Landscape with Figures is all about atmosphere. There isn't much action. A few people make their way through a frozen landscape where boats are trapped in the ice, bare trees stretch toward the sky, and a broken sled suggests that winter wasn't always easy. But that is not really the point. What draws you are the thick clouds drifting across the sky and a soft glow on the horizon that makes the whole scene feel peaceful rather than bleak.
Van de Cappelle was one of the greatest marine painters of the 17th century, and his eye for light and weather shines through here. Winter isn't presented as something to conquer or complain about. It is just a matter of fact. The people in the painting carry on, adapting to the season just as generations before them had done.
Hendrick de Meijer, on the other hand, had a very different idea of winter. His A Winter Landscape with Numerous Horse-Drawn Sleighs on the Ice is full of action. The frozen river has turned into the town's main street, packed with skaters, horses, sleighs, and people enjoying the day. Everywhere you look, something is happening.
The action in the foreground provides entertainment for the viewer. A golfer has just been knocked off his feet by an elaborate horse-drawn sleigh. His club lies on the ice while the sleigh carries on, seemingly without missing a beat. It's the kind of quirky moment that makes you smile and reminds you that people four hundred years ago weren't all that different from us. Someone was always in the wrong place at the wrong time.
De Meijer loved painting these bustling winter scenes. Instead of focusing on the cold, he celebrates everything that came with it. When the rivers froze, they became gathering places where people from all walks of life came together to skate, ride, socialize, and simply enjoy themselves.
Seen side by side, these paintings show two sides of winter. One is calm and quiet, inviting you to slow down and take in the beauty of the season. The other is lively, funny, and full of life. And on a hot summer afternoon, both offer a welcome reminder that sometimes the coolest places to visit are found not outdoors, but on the canvas.
29 July 2026