(Amsterdam 1644–1709 Vollenhove)
A landscape in the Roman Campagna with a castle in the background,
oil on canvas, 89 x 114 cm, framed

We are grateful to Luuk Pijl for suggesting the attribution of the present painting to Nicolas Piemont. A written certificate is available.

This Italianate landscape is an example of Piemont’s ability to lure the viewer into a distant world and make that world seem welcoming and familiar. In a gentle mountainous setting, reminiscent of the hills of the Roman Campagna, travellers converse on a path. The men are surrounded by imposing rocks and trees whose foliage creates a rich play with the light clouds and the changing hues of the golden morning light that saturates this scene. Although the human figures are dwarfed by the majestic trees, man and nature seem to exist in perfect harmony. A smaller work by Piemont, also on canvas, 48 x 65 cm, in the Pushkin Museum, Moscow, has many similar features compared to the present painting. However, the large trees on the left are omitted in the Pushkin Museum. Since the design of the museum painting is less complex, we might assume that our painting predates the Russian work.

Nicolas Piemont is considered the best of the artists inspired by the late classical landscapes by Jan Both, Jan van Huysum, Jan Griffier and Abraham Genoels. Like the Italianate landscapes of Jan Both, his works were prized by Dutch patricians, who preferred them to the native Dutch landscapes in the manner of Jan van Goyen. The Amsterdam born Piemont was a member of the Roman Bentvueghels, with the nickname ‘Opgang’. While in Rome, he was associated with Abraham Genoels. Both joined the artistic society called the Bentvueghels in 1674. Apart from painting cabinet size canvases, Piemomt was also responsible for the miniature landscapes in the famous dollhouse of Petronella Oortman, today in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.