Landscape with a Rainbow
Jan van Goyen·1641
Historical Context
Landscape with a Rainbow from 1641 at the Hallwyl Museum is an unusual subject for Van Goyen, introducing a dramatic meteorological phenomenon into his typically subtle atmospheric paintings. The rainbow adds a note of natural spectacle to the familiar flat Dutch terrain. Van Goyen developed his distinctive tonal monochrome palette in the 1630s, restricting himself to earthy browns, warm greys, and soft greens that gave his landscapes a unified atmospheric quality. His enormous output — over ...
Technical Analysis
The rainbow arcs across the cloudy sky, its colors providing rare chromatic variety within Van Goyen's characteristically restricted palette of tonal greys and browns.
