# The Towpath

**Johan Barthold Jongkind** (Dutch, 1819–1891)  
1864  
oil on canvas  
overall: 34.3 x 47 cm (13 1/2 x 18 1/2 in.) framed: 50.8 x 63.18 x 7.94 cm (20 x 24 7/8 x 3 1/8 in.)

Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2006.128.22. [The museum's record](https://www.nga.gov/collection/art-object-page.136018.html).

## About this work

Johan Barthold Jongkind painted this in 1864, aged 45. It is now at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.

### What you’re looking at

This painting shows a landscape with a horizon in the lower third of the composition. On the left side of the painting, there are tall trees along a canal. In the center is a dirt path on the other edge of the canal, with a person riding a donkey who looks over their shoulder towards us. On the right side, there are white buildings in the distance, with a grassy field leading towards them. The light blue sky is filled with fluffy clouds, and the water of the canal reflects the sky and trees. The brushstrokes of the painting are thick and visible, especially in the sky.

_Description from the National Gallery of Art._

### How it was made

- **Oil paint.** Pigment ground in a drying oil, usually linseed. It dries slowly, so painters could blend on the canvas, build up thin translucent glazes, and rework a picture over weeks. Canvas replaced wooden panels in the 1500s because it is lighter and can be rolled.

### [Johan Barthold Jongkind](https://www.ochreeditions.com/artists/johan-barthold-jongkind)

Dutch, 1819–1891

## Facts

- Type: Painting
- The artist was 45
- Real size: about 14 × 19 in (34 × 47 cm). The 16 × 20 in print is close to life size.
- Century: 19th century
- Subjects: topographical, Canal, Towpath
- Colour: olive
- Rights: public domain (CC0 1.0); free to use for any purpose.

## Get it

- Free download, full resolution: https://img.ochreeditions.com/m/1664.jpg?dl=1
- Image: https://img.ochreeditions.com/a/1664/1920.jpg
- Giclée reproduction on Hahnemühle Photo Rag: 8 × 10 in $28; 11 × 14 in $38; 12 × 16 in $42; 16 × 20 in $56; 18 × 24 in $68; 20 × 30 in $86
- Framed reproduction: 8 × 10 in $78; 11 × 14 in $98; 12 × 16 in $108; 16 × 20 in $138; 18 × 24 in $164; 20 × 30 in $208
- Canvas reproduction: 8 × 10 in $58; 11 × 14 in $72; 12 × 16 in $79; 16 × 20 in $98; 18 × 24 in $118
- Print-ready file: 8 × 10 in $2; 11 × 14 in $2; 12 × 16 in $3; 16 × 20 in $3; 18 × 24 in $3; 20 × 30 in $5

Sizes stop where the museum's file would print below 150 pixels per inch. Everything sold is a reproduction, made to order. [Order a print](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/the-towpath-nga-136018).