Lisse near Haarlem, 1775

About the Work

Paulus van Liender was a pupil of his uncle Jacob van Liender and Cornelis Pronk. He possessed a special gift not only for representing various surface textures – for example brick masonry, tree bark or foliage – in detail and realistic three-dimensionality, but also for staging the light and shade falling on them to good effect. The church tower at the centre identifies this drawing as a depiction of a certain place, the village of Lisse near Haarlem. The artist’s main concern, however, was the atmospheric description of a village road on a sunny day.