1133 - WOUWERMAN, PHILIPS

WOUWERMAN, PHILIPS 1619 Haarlem–1668 Haarlem Title: The Hayfield. Date: Around 1655. Technique: Oil on panel. Dimensions: 40.5 x 41.5 cm. Inscription: Monogrammed lower left: 'PsL.W'. Reverse: On the panel, an old, partially torn label (presumably a collection label dated May 15, 1841), remnants of a red wax seal, collection stamps on the panel and frame, and, on the frame, a numbered label and a label from the Dr. H. Girardet Collection. Frame: Framed. Provenance refers to the lineage of a work of art; if the discerning eye of a recognized connoisseur has deemed an object to be of high quality and has included it in and retained it in his or her own collection, this is a mark of distinction that elevates the work’s standing within the artist’s body of work as well as the value of the object itself. It is a true pleasure and honor to be able to offer works of art with such well-documented provenance. Here we now present four works from the magnificent collection of the Essen-based publisher Herbert Girardet, which he built up with great passion and with the assistance of art historians Eduard Plietzsch and Horst Gerson (who served for many years as director of the RKD in The Hague) beginning in the late 1950s. Herbert Girardet’s father and grandfather had already been collectors of the highest caliber, though they specialized in 19th-century painting. During a study visit to London, Herbert Girardet discovered his interest in the “Golden Age” of the Netherlands while visiting the city’s museums, and from that point on, he was committed to building a collection and continually enhancing its quality. In 1970, a large portion of this collection was presented to the public in a major exhibition at the Wallraf-Richartz Museum and the Museum Boymans-van Beuningen and documented in a catalog. A particular highlight is lot number 1133, Philip Wouwerman’s painting “In the Hayfield,” which Herbert Girardet was able to acquire with a “highly distinguished” provenance and which is also extensively referenced in the literature. It depicts a break from work in the countryside. Wouwerman, who was famous for his depictions of horses, places a gray horse at the center of the composition, resting next to a reclining donkey. The drawbar of the wagon from which he was presumably unhitched is just barely visible at the right edge of the painting. In addition to the high, cloud-filled sky, this nearly square painting is particularly striking for the graphic lightness with which the figures of the farmers—some still working, others already resting—are painted. With the subtlest of nuances, the painter has even made the direction of the wind visually perceptible: the horse’s mane, the ripples on the water, and the branches of the tree reveal which way the wind is blowing. Provenance: - Dr. Herbert Girardet Collection, Essen; Sotheby’s auction, London, July 2, 1958, lot 33 (attributed to Philips Wouwerman), sold to Edward Speelman; Joseph Barchard Collection, London; Lürmann Collection, Bremen, 1863; Lady Louisa Stuart Collection, London, sold on May 15, 1841, lot 71; Auction, Paris, April 8–June 6, 1777, lot 346; Collection of the Prince de Conti, 1717–1776; Auction, Paris, April 6, 1772, Lot 52 (attributed to Philips Wouwerman), sold to the Boileau Collection; Duc de Choiseul Collection, Paris, 1719–1785; presumably the Jacques Meijers Collection, Rotterdam, sold on September 9, 1722, Lot 107. Exhibition: Herbert Girardet Collection: Dutch and Flemish Masters. Wallraf-Richartz Museum, Cologne, and Museum Boijmans-Van Beuningen, Rotterdam, 1970; British Institution for Promoting Fine Arts in the United Kingdom, London 1847, no. 7. Literature: B. Schumacher: Philips Wouwerman (1619–1668). The Horse Painter of the Golden Age, Doornspijk 2006, no. A449 with ill. panel 419; Girardet, Herbert, Vey, Horst: The Herbert Girardet Collection. Essen 1970, no. 67, with ill.; C. Hofstede de Groot: A Catalogue Raisonné of the Works of the Most Eminent Dutch Painters of the Seventeenth Century, Vol. II, London 1909, p. 572, no. 963b. Estimated shipping costs for this lot: This lot is not suitable for parcel shipping. Transport is available only through a shipping company after consultation following the auction. Additional shipping insurance Shipping insurance up to a total invoice amount of 25,000 euros: max. 41.65 euros For a total invoice amount exceeding 25,000 Euros: 1.8 per thousand Shipping to the USA by individual arrangement after the auction. #Philips Wouwerman #Dutch School #The Netherlands #17th C. #Horses #Landscape #Old Masters.