D’ALESIO 17th-CENTURY DUTCH SCHOOL Pair of River Scenes c. 1640 Oil on canvas 50 x 40 cm. Signed lower right From one bank to the other… these two mirrored views of jetties form the matching pairs of a single river landscape and could depict the mouth of the same river. The eye wanders from one panel to the other, seeking similarities and differences, as in a game of ‘spot the seven differences’. The effect of symmetry predominates with these two boats in the foreground, set to cross paths shortly, guided by the same ferryman standing at the stern. They provide the continuity of a bridge and bear witness to heavy ferry traffic. Similarly, on the banks, echoes can be seen from one painting to the other, such as the figure seated in the foreground who stares at the viewer, and the couples sitting nearby. The right-hand bank seems however busier, whilst a horseman stands out on the left. Nevertheless, it is above all the architecture that frames and structures this pair, in a similar manner, and lends it its uniformity. At the centre of each painting, a tower—round or square— marks the anchor point, at the foot of which a few houses cluster to form a hamlet. At each end, the dark façade of a building frames the composition. The distribution of light follows the same symmetrical patterns; foregrounds in semi-darkness, with a bright opening on the horizon. The blue sky, streaked with yellow clouds, is also arranged in mirrored pairs. Somewhere between seascapes and genre scenes, these paintings fit perfectly into the great tradition of Dutch Golden Age painting. The figures, dressed in the fashion of the 17th century, move through a landscape setting with bucolic overtones. The golden light that bathes both compositions brings out a range of bright, cheerful colours, where the reds and blues of the clothing punctuate the scenes with a certain regularity. The lapis lazuli-blue sky, streaked with golden clouds, hints at a setting sun, thus providing the most beautiful light—the golden hour. Nothing here is truly realistic, as the aim is rather to present a picturesque, serene and narrative vision of everyday life, where the eye is drawn to imagining anecdotes, inventing the characters’ lives, and dreaming of an ideal society—one to which the prosperous Holland of the 17th century might have aspired to.