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Mesdag began gathering his treasures at a time when the Barbizon school was hardly known; when a hundred other painters had not been tempted by the dealers into overproduction; when, in a word, fancy prices were not dreamed of. The Alma-Tademas are among his best, little as we admire his vital marbles and lifeless humans. An early portrait of his wife is here.
She built a studio in the woods of Scheveningen, and there developed her characteristics close observation and careful reproduction of details. In the summer of 1872 M. and Mme. Mesdag went to Friesland and Drenthe, where they made numerous sketches of the heath, sheep, farmhouses, and the people in their quaint costumes. One of Mme.
Mesdag, Maris, Alfred Stevens, to name only a few of the artists, have found here themes for many paintings, and the scene is a wonderful one when the homing fleet of "Boms," as the fishing-boats are called, appears in the offing to be welcomed by the fisherwomen. There are other smaller watering-places on the coast, but Scheveningen is unique.
While residing in Brussels these two artists began to collect works of art for what is now known as the Mesdag Museum. In 1887 a wing was added to their house to accommodate their increasing treasures, which include especially good examples of modern French painting, pottery, tapestry, etc. In 1889 an exhibition of the works of these painters was held. Here convincing proof was given of Mme.
"Innocence Prefers Love to Riches" and the "Torch of Venus" are well-known works by Mlle. Mayer. <b>MESDAG-VAN HOUTEN, S.</b> Gold medal at Amsterdam, 1884; bronze medal, Paris Exposition, 1889. Born at Groningen, 1834. In 1856 she married Mesdag, who, rather late in life decided to follow the career of a painter.
Mesdag excels in marines, painting great sweep of waters with breadth and simplicity. His palette is cool and restrained, his rhythmic sense well developed, and his feeling for outdoors truly Dutch. He belongs to the line of the classic Dutch marinists, to Van der Velde, Backhuizen, and Van Goyen. His wife, a woman of charm and culture, died in the spring of last year.
Old David Bles is here, and Blommers, De Bock, Bosboom, Valkenburg, Alma-Tadema, Ary Scheffer of Dutch descent Roelofs, Mesdag, Mauve, Jakob Maris, Jongkind, and some of the Frenchmen, Rousseau, Millet, Dupré, and others. The Six gallery is not so accessible as it was some years ago. No doubt its Rembrandts and Vermeers will eventually find their way into the Rijks Museum.
Two weeks' daily attendance at this excellently planned collection did no more than fix the position of the exhibits in the mind. There is a goodly gathering of such names as Israels, Mesdag, Blommers, and others at the Rijks, but the display of modern Dutch pictures at the Municipal Museum is more representative.
Next door is the studio of the aged Mesdag, a hale old Dutchman who paints daily and looks forward to seeing his ninety years. In Holland octogenarians are not few. The climate is propitious; above all, the absence of hurry and worry. To see The Hague without visiting this collection would be a regrettable omission. In writing of Holland more is said of its windmills than its flowers.
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