CITYSCAPE OF UTRECHT

Drawing with watercolor, made approx. 1830 by Jan Hendrik Verheijen. Signed on the bottom step “jverheijen f.“. Size: 38.2 x 33.2 cm.

We are looking from the stadsbuitengracht [outer canal] toward the Wittevrouwenpoort and -bridge from the northeast. In the background, the Dom tower rises above the city. The Wittevrouwenpoort was one of the four gates providing access to the city of Utrecht. The gate was located on the northeastern side of the current city center, near the Wittevrouwensingel, where the Wittevrouwenbrug is now situated. The Wittevrouwenpoort was demolished around 1858.

The cityscape is not entirely accurate. In reality, the Wittevrouwenpoort was hexagonal, not square, and the front of the building was different. Also, the Dom tower in reality is more pointed.

Jan Hendrik Verheijen (1778-1846) was trained as a notary, but at the age of 21, with his parents’ permission, he chose to become an artist and apprenticed with the Utrecht carriage and decoration painter Nicolaas Osti (1757-1801).

Although he also created landscapes, church interiors, and portraits, Verheijen became primarily known as a cityscape painter, especially of Utrecht. His themes often included seventeenth- and eighteenth-century houses, frequently featuring medieval churches or city gates. He worked with great precision, usually beautiful, warm colours. As preparation, he often made various architectural sketches. Later in his career, his cityscapes became partly imagined.

Price: Euro 1.850,-
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