Lot 102: Albertus Gerardus Bilders (Dutch, 1838-1865)

Avondlandschap: farmhouses along a pool at dusk and a windmill in the distance signed 'Gerard Bilders' (lower right) oil on canvas 50 x 75 cm. PROVENANCE Mrs Y.M.G. Vorstelman-Brix, Hilversum. Anon. Sale, Christie's Laren, 23 March 1977, lot 324. LITERATURE H.F.W. Jeltes, Gerard Bilders-Een schildersleven in het midden der 19de eeuw, The Hague 1947, cat.no 43, ill.10. H.F.W. Jeltes, Elsevier's Maandschrift, February 1935, ill. XXV. EXHIBITION Amsterdam, Museum Fodor, Gerard Bilders 1838-1865, 1938-1939, cat.no. 29. Eindhoven, Museum Kempenland, De Haagse School-Thema van een Collectioneur, 4 July-6 September 1992, cat.no. 8, ill. NOTES In the autumn of 1860 Bilders visited Brussels together with his father J.W. Bilders. It was here that the young Bilders was exposed to the work of the French Barbizon painters for the very first time. Their attitude towards painting had such an impact on Bilders that the artist began to capture the Dutch landscape in a much more naturalistic manner than before. Just as the before mentioned French pioneers, Bilders began painting 'en plein air' and enriched his work with a dramatic play of light. The following passage in a letter to Kneppelhout (1 October 1862) highlights the emphasis the artist placed on atmospheric qualities:'Als ik nu de lucht maar kan krijgen, zooals ik die by Loghem heb waargenomen. Want het was een oogenblik vol schoonheid en poezie, vol van die diepe stemming die men alleen des avonds in de natuur in de natuur vindt, een dier ogenblikken van ernst en rust' ( Brieven en Dagboek van A.G. Bilders, Leiden 1876, p.285/286) The present lot, which most probably depicts the surroundings of Lochem, is rendered with that very attention for light and atmosphere Bilders describes in the letter to his maecenas.