Hendrick Avercamp's winter wonderlands

Hendrick Avercamp's 1608 artwork Winter Landscape with Ice Skaters has been a popular painting for centuries. Art lovers over the years have been charmed by its skating figures and their antics, whether funny, domestic or risqué.

Often confused with artworks by Bruegels, Avercamp specialised in painting winter scenes.

Let's take a look at the life of Hendrick Avercamp.

Who was Hendrick Avercamp?

Hendrick Avercamp was born in Amsterdam in 1585. He moved to Kampen as a child when his father was appointed as the town's apothecary.

Avercamp was born with a disability - he was non-verbal and it is assumed he was deaf. In several documents, Avercamp is mentioned as 'the Kampen Mute' ('de Stomme van Kampen').

His mother taught him to write, but through his drawings and paintings we see Avercamp's creative skill.

When he was 12, Avercamp started taking drawing lessons locally. Aged 18, he moved to Amsterdam where he trained with the Danish artist Pieter Isaacsz.

What were Hendrick Avercamp's frozen landscape paintings?

In Amsterdam, Avercamp encountered and was influenced by the work of Flemish landscape painters such as Gillis van Coninxloo III and David Vinckboons.

These landscape paintings influenced Avercamp's own works. Over time, he became known for highly-detailed winter landscape paintings.

Avercamp's paintings were more than just frozen snapshots - they were vibrant and full of life.

His scenes show crowds of people engaged in various activities: skating, sledding, and playing games amidst the frozen landscapes. He captured the bustling atmosphere of winter leisure with a sense of joy and fun. Some are doing more naughty activities: throwing snowballs, making fun of others and urinating.

Painting in the 'Little Ice Age' and the so-called 'Golden Age'

Painted at the beginning of the 17th century, his artworks reflect the creativity, optimism and a sense of Dutch identity that arose when Holland became independent from Spain, the start of a time often described as the Dutch Golden Age of art and culture.

His paintings reveal a lot about life then in the Netherlands and how the Dutch adapted to harsh weather conditions in what was known as the Little Ice Age. This was a time of cooler climates and weather, at various periods during the 16th to 19th centuries.

The last quarter of the 16th century, during which Avercamp was born, was one of Western Europe's coldest periods in the Little Ice Age.

Winters saw more snow and ice, often starting as early as November and lasting until March or April. Canals and rivers were frequently frozen deeply enough to support ice skating and winter festivals.

What were the influences and techniques in Avercamp's paintings?

Avercamp's paintings were composed in a studio, based on watercolours and studies.

To focus on the activity on the frozen ice, Avercamp uses a high perspective - a style which follows Flemish landscape painting.

He also uses a technique called aerial or atmospheric perspective which suggests distance - figures in the foreground are painted more vividly and those in the background are painted with lighter colours.

Avercamp's paintings were popular in his day, selling for high prices. Avercamp passed away in 1634 at the age of 48. His paintings have remained as popular throughout the centuries as in his time.