Landscape with castle ruins and church by Jacob van Reisdal

This landscape is one of the best panoramic views owned by Reisdal. The artist often wrote panoramic views, but the attempts of researchers to establish the exact places of their creation failed every time.

In the end, it turned out that all the panoramic views of the Ruysdael can be called semi-fantastic. He, starting from the species he encountered in the vicinity of Haarlem, combined their separate elements in the composition that were born in his imagination.

Thus, it is logical to assume that the master made only preliminary sketches in the open air, and the main work on the painting took place already in the workshop. “Landscape with the ruins of the castle” is very characteristic of the manner of Reisdal. As usual, most of the canvas is occupied by the sky covered with clouds.

Clouds are always the artist wrote with inimitable skill, being able to catch the almost elusive transitions from light to shadow. It is believed that the figures of people and animals are written by Adrian van de Velde. If this is true, then the picture could not be created later in 1672, when van de Velde died. Note that the swans swimming in the pond, which was once a castle moat, are most likely written by Reisdal himself.