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17th-century Netherlands

Works made in the Netherlands in the 17th century.

91 works · hang 992 ·

The rooms are imagined; every work on their walls is real.

Walk this roomRehang this room

First room, north wall

  1. Wheat Fields, by Jacob van Ruisdael, ca. 1670
    Wheat FieldsJacob van Ruisdael, ca. 1670Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Golden sunlight pours across a landscape with three people on horseback and two more people near a flock of sheep, a cow, and a mule in this horizontal painting. The people all have pale, peachy skin. The horizon is about a third of the way up the composition and is lined with towers on distant, hazy, pale yellow hills. Two of the horses are to the right of center, both facing us. The horse on the left is white, and the rider wears an azure-blue tunic and red brimless cap. The other horse is brown with a white blaze, and its rider wears a red tunic and black cap. That second rider points with a whip to the sitting and standing people near the sheep, to the right. Those two people wear brown jackets, and the standing man has a mustache. The seated person rests a long staff over one shoulder. About half of the nine sheep there lie on the ground, and the others stand. The cow dips her head down to the sheep, and the splay-footed donkey has baskets hung to each side. This grouping is in front of a copse of tall trees that nearly reach the top edge of the composition. The third rider is to our left and a short distance away. That dark brown horse gallops to our right. A short distance away, another herdsman along the left edge of the composition wears a red tunic and brown pants, and he rests a long staff on one shoulder. One cow stands and one lies down next to that herdsman. Sunlight rakes across twigs, leafy plants, scrubby growth, and rocks in the foreground, closest to us. Sailboats float on the waterways that stretch horizontally across the painting in the distance, and the land separating those bodies of water is dotted with spires, windmills, towers, and other structures. A dozen dark birds fly high in the sky, which takes up the top two-thirds of the picture. A bank of iridescent yellow and pearly white clouds trundle across the pale blue sky. The artist signed the painting in the lower right corner, “A.cuijp.”
    Horsemen and Herdsmen with CattleAelbert Cuyp, 1655/1660Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

First room, south wall

  1. A Cottage in the Woods, by Meindert Hobbema, c. 1662
    A Cottage in the WoodsMeindert Hobbema, c. 1662Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. Cow, Bull and Calf, by Karel Dujardin
    Cow, Bull and CalfKarel DujardinCourtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  3. Landscape painting featuring a wavy tree tree in the foreground and a watermill with a red roof adjacent to a river at right. Colors are subdued earth tones, the foliage a dark green and the river a muddy brown. Water flows through the mill wheel under a cloudy sky of gray and blue. Three individuals can be seen in the distance at left.
    The Watermill with the Great Red RoofMeindert Hobbema, c. 1665Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Second room, south wall

  1. The image shows a woman standing close to us, slightly turned to the side, looking down, with a hand supporting her draped attire and the other grasping a stick. Next to her, a donkey drinks from a shallow stream, carrying a large wicker basket with barrels inside. A dog is splashing in the water beside them. The horizon is low, meeting a rise of land with trees and shrubs, leading the eye to a distant pathway where a couple of small figures can be seen. The sky above has sketchily rendered clouds. The style involves fine, detailed linework, characteristic of etching, emphasizing textures such as the fur of the donkey and the folds of the fabric. The color palette is monochromatic, relying on various intensities of ink and line density to render shadows and highlights.
    Woman Crossing a StreamKarel Dujardin, 1662Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. Shown from the chest up, a light-skinned man with a wrinkled face and a silvery gray beard and hair gazes into the distance in this oval portrait painting. His chest is angled to our right but he turns his head to look off over his other shoulder, to our left. His slate-blue eyes are a little sunken and lined with wrinkles. Shading marks the hollows of the temple and cheek we can see. His thin lips are closed and framed by his curly mustache and beard. A dark, mahogany-brown cap is pushed back on his head, and his brown jacket has gold-colored buttons down the front. The collar of a cream-colored shirt shows through at the neckline. The background is dark olive green. The artist signed the work near the man’s shoulder, to our right: “GDOV.”
    Bust of a Bearded ManGerrit Dou, c. 1642/1645Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  3. Peacocks, by Melchior d' Hondecoeter, 1683
    PeacocksMelchior d' Hondecoeter, 1683Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Second room, north wall

  1. In the center of this painting, a large animal carcass is hanging upside down from a wooden frame, with several people attending to it. The carcass is light pink and has been cut open to reveal white ribs, red muscles, and purple organs. On the far left, a young boy stands next to a barrel and a basket, holding several small knives. To the right, a man in a red cap and white apron observes the carcass while holding a drink. An older man in a furred cap and dark clothing looks towards him and holds one edge of the carcass. On the other side of the animal, a young boy blows up a round object. Two women peer out from the doorway of a wooden building in the background, one holding a basket full of what looks like meat. Behind this group of people are several brown structures and a bare tree against a light pink sky.
    The Slaughtered HogJan Victors, 1653Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. Self-Portrait, by Rembrandt van Rijn, 1660
    Self-PortraitRembrandt van Rijn, 1660Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. The Mocking of Ceres, by Hendrik Goudt, 1610
    The Mocking of CeresHendrik Goudt, 1610Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Third room, north wall

  1. A work made of oil on canvas.
    A Vanitas Still Life with a Flag, Candlestick, Musical Instruments, Books, Writing Paraphernalia, Globes, and HourglassEdwaert Collier, 1662Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. A work made of oil on canvas.
    The Dutch Whaling FleetAbraham Storck, c. 1695Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. A work made of watercolor and opaque watercolor on cream laid paper.
    Megasoma Elephas or Megaceras Jason and Six Other InsectsPieter Holsteyn, the younger, 1640/80Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Third room, south wall

  1. A work made of oil on canvas.
    Portrait of a LadyFrans Hals, 1627Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. A work made of oil on canvas.
    The Music LessonGerard ter Borch the Younger, c. 1670Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago