Vast polders bisected by ditches, with here and there a windmill, farmhouse or stand of trees; a winding river offering a variety of views – for Piet Mondrian, working in the rural surrounds of Amsterdam was a treat.
He had become known in the capital as a painter of city scenes featuring water, boats and factories. To earn money, he occasionally produced a portrait or a flower still life. But he discovered that his true interest and talent lay in landscape work.
Starting in 1900, Mondrian left his residential studio in Amsterdam more and more often to work on the outskirts of the city. The area around the river Gein especially interested him. Between 1905 and 1907, he almost exclusively chose scenes along the river as his subjects.
The area invited an endless exploration of forms, of the contours of farmhouses and clumps of trees, of reflections on the water, light and shadow, space, and above all, the possibilities and limitations of his materials. Mondrian’s excursions here led to elaborate experiments made on the spot and paintings, watercolours and drawings finished back in the studio.