Jacob van Ruysdal – the largest Dutch landscape painter of the XVII century. He was the nephew of S. van Reisdal and, perhaps, he received his first painting lessons. Initially, the master worked in Haarlem and in 1648 became a member of the painters guild.
As an artist, he was formed entirely under the influence of Harlem landscape painters, but after traveling through Holland, western Germany, he significantly expanded his horizons. Later Reisdal moved to Amsterdam.
The artist was engaged not only in painting, he also studied medicine and in 1676 in the Treasury received the degree of doctor of medicine. However, neither painting nor the field of the doctor brought him income and lifetime glory. Reisdal died a beggar in an Amsterdam poorhouse. The best works of the master were created by him in the mid-1650s – late 1660s. At this time, he wrote monumental landscape compositions, rich in tonal hues, with plastic tactile forms, drama.
At the end of his life, Reisdal turned to fantastic mountain landscapes with roaring waterfalls. All works of the artist are deeply emotional, capable of creating a mood, like, for example, the painting “Ray of the Sun.” Other famous works: “Seashore”. Late 1660s – early 1670s. Hermitage, St. Petersburg; “Windmill in Wake near Dursted”. 1670. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam; “Swamp”. 1660s Hermitage, St. Petersburg.
