Landscape with a village and a river

Sebastiaan Vrancx(1573-1647) was, apart from a painter, also an etcher and poet-playwrighter and in the 17th century a respected painter of battles. Some of his works were in the possession of Peter Paul Rubens. His most famous pupil was Pieter Snayers, who followed in the footsteps of his master and specialised in military subjects. Most works by Vrancx show Biblical scenes, genre paintings, allegorical tableaux, war scenes such as the ransacking of towns, and the cavalry. He frequently painted small formats, landscapes or architectural scenes provided with various figures. He was regularly called on by other painters to add figures to their work. Landscapes generally take up a prominent place in his paintings. This Italianising landscape is not overwhelming, the mountain streams are rather calmly rippling creeks, the trees nicely lined out, the air and clouds anything but threatening. Vrancx’s paintings and drawings were very popular and were copied many times in paintings as well as engravings.