Meindert Hobbema injected a bright, airy spaciousness into the twilight world of Dutch Golden Age landscape painting. Raised in a municipal orphanage, he became the only documented apprentice to the legendary Jacob van Ruisdael. He ultimately broke away from his mentor’s heavy, melancholic tone to forge a sunnier and more idyllic visual style.

He repeatedly populated his large-scale panels with a handful of preferred motifs. He masterfully structured compositions around sun-dappled forests, glistening ponds, and intricate wooden watermills. After securing a municipal job weighing imported wine in 1668, his artistic production slowed to a near halt. Yet, decades later, he painted his definitive masterpiece, The Avenue at Middelharnis.

Hobbema died in extreme poverty. Yet his structured use of perspective and open horizons deeply inspired generations of masters who followed. Today, his sunny, harmonious vistas are celebrated in the National Gallery and the Rijksmuseum.