Aelbert Cuyp

Rating:
Summary: From fantasy to realism....
Review: AELBERT CUYP is an art book developed in conjunction with the exhibit of Cuyp's work currently on view at the National Gallery in Washington (10/01-1/02), the National Gallery in London (2/02-5/02), and the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam (6/02-9/02). If you want to get a head start on your visit to the exhibit (and avoid dragging home a heavy book afterward) you may want to buy the book beforehand. In addition to photographs of the paintings and drawings in the exhibit, the book contains five essays. My favorite is entitled "Pigments and color change in the paintings of Aelbert Cuyp" by Marika Spring.

Unlike many contemporary painters, Aelbert Cuyp died a wealthy man. He married well and he amassed a fortune in revenue from his patrons. He was frequently commissioned to paint family gatherings such as 'Portrait of a Family in a Landscape' which he may have developed in collaboration with his father Jacob.

Cuyp's patrons were conspicuous consumers who wanted their wealth noted in portraiture. Cuyp addressed this by painting their horses and clothing with exquisite detail. In an essay entitled, "Cuyp's horsemen: what do the costumes tell us?", Emilie E.S. Gordenker traces the origins of the Hungarian-Turkish influence on the clothing Cuyp's models.

Many Hungarians attended school in the Netherlands in the 17th Century. These young men were heros because they had driven the Turks from the doors of Europe and saved Hungary for Protestant Christianity (much to the delight of the Protestant Dutch). Following their victory, the Hungarians adapted Turkish elements of clothing such as linen undershirts, hip-length tunics, and turbans. The Dutch upper classes made this remarkable new dress the latest fashion. (Recall the oriental aspects of clothing in Rembrandt's paintings? Cuyp literally followed suit).

Cuyp (pronounced as "cowpt") is best known by his bucolic landscapes filled with farm animals, particularly cows--cows in the river, cows in the barn, cows in the fields, cows in the woods, cows with herdsmen, and herdsmen with cattle. However, he was also a master horse painter (plenty of gentry and aristoi on horseback), and his maritime scenes are gorgeous. According to Spring, he introduced the "yellow light" of the Italian Renaissance to Dutch landscape painting. His views of lakes, rivers, and harbor scenes exude a peaceful, serene, and almost other worldly beauty. I particularly like 'Dordrect Harbor by Moonlight'.

The last part of the book contains an essay and reproductions of Cuyp's many realistic pen and ink drawings from the area around Dordrect. These are beautiful sepia pieces you won't want to overlook.