AERNOUT SMIT (Amsterdam 1640 – Amsterdam 1710)
Shipping in Choppy Waters
signed with initials AS in the lower right
oil on panel
7 ¼ x 11 inches (19 x 29.4cm.)
PROVENANCE
Arthur Kay, Edinburgh
Anonymous sale, Christie’s, London, March 29, 1929, lot 73 (as by Jan Porcellis) where purchased by
R. Ward
Aernout Smit was a pupil of Jan Theunisz. Blanckerhoff. He was married to Marietie Jans Weema, who ran a grocery store. When he posted the banns in 1663 prior to his marriage, he listed his profession as a sailor. By 1667 it is thought that he painted scenes on commission for the art dealer Laurens Cornelisz. de Coninck. By 1688 Smit was a member of the St. Luke’s Guild in Amsterdam. His primary focus was seascapes, but he also painted beach scenes and landscapes. Ludolf Backhuysen was a major influence on his work.[1]
Works by the artist formed part of the permanent collections of the museums in Bergamo, Bonn, Copenhagen, Darmstadt, Hamburg, Karlsruhe, Mannheim, Nantes, Oslo, Rotenburg, and Schwerin, among others.
In this scene of approaching storm clouds, choppy seas and gale force winds; man’s eternal battle with the sea is vividly realized.
[1] Biographical information taken from “Aernout Smit” on rkd.nl (RKD Explore) website; and Aernout Smit, The Kremer Collection at thekremercollection.com.