Windmill at Wijk bij Duurstede

Jacob van Ruisdael painted this Windmill at Wijk bij Duurstede around 1670. A cylindrical stone windmill dominates the composition, its white canvas sails catching wind against a turbulent sky. Dark clouds mass overhead while a break in the weather illuminates the mill and the water below.

The viewpoint is low, looking up at the structure from near water level. This gives the windmill a heroic, almost monumental presence. Small figures and boats populate the riverbank, dwarfed by the mill and sky. Such structures were essential to Dutch life, pumping water from reclaimed land.

The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam holds this painting, one of the most recognized images of the Dutch Golden Age. Ruisdael's dramatic skies influenced generations of landscape painters. For similar scenes, explore landscape paintings.