View of the church of Bloemendaal near Haarlem, 1746

About the Work

The church in Bloemendaal, a small town near Haarlem, is half-hidden behind the trees. The artist – a pupil of Cornelis Pronk – was concerned not so much with its architecture as with a charming depiction of “downtown Bloemendaal”, complete with the inn opposite the church, a coach in front of it, pedestrians and dogs. De Beijer later revised the motif to make a print of it in which the trees are sparser, affording a better view of the place of worship.