1037 - David Teniers d. J.

David Teniers d. J. David Teniers the Younger A river landscape with travellers by a jetty and a man in a rowing boat, a church beyond Oil on panel (parquetted). 13.5 x 21 cm. Monogrammed lower right: DT. F. Provenance Christie's, London, 8.12.1989, lot 56. – Christie's, London, 9.7.1999, lot 112. – Sotheby's, London, 3.–14.12.2021, lot 11. – Where acquired by the present owner. This small painting demonstrates David Teniers’ mastery as a landscape painter. The particular atmospheric effect of the river landscape rests above all on the finely graded, soft handling of light. A gnarled group of trees at the left edge frames the view, which is led across the still water to the village church nestled among trees in the middle ground. With a few assured brushstrokes Teniers enlivens the scene with small figures: a ferryman pushing his boat off from the bank with a pole, and a group of country folk conversing on the sandy shore. The high sky, streaked with bright clouds, occupies much of the picture surface and lends the composition its sense of space. It was precisely such intimate, carefully executed landscapes with staffage figures that were highly sought after by collectors and contributed to the artist’s fame. The attribution to David Teniers the Younger was confirmed by Margret Klinge on the occasion of the painting’s sale at auction in 1999.