Constant Artz - Mother duck with her ducklings

The painting is in good condition. Hairlines visible in raking light. In a beautiful Gehring/Heijdenrijk frame. When you think of ducks and friendly impressionist paintings, you think of Constant Artz (Paris 1870-1951 Soest) and Willem Maris. Artz in particular made it his life's work; because he loved nature and had success with it.
He was born as the son of the Hague School painter DAC Artz in Paris, where his father studied with Gustave Courbet. During that period, there were numerous Dutch artists who stayed in Paris for a short or long period of time. After all, Paris was the centre of art in the 19th century; the place where all new artistic developments took place. The Dutch variant of impressionism was therefore instilled in Constant from an early age. At home, he got to know his father's painter friends, Jacob (with whom his father shared a studio) and Matthijs Maris, and also Willem Mesdag. Although he also painted a few genre scenes, cityscapes and still lifes, Constant Artz decided to focus on Dutch landscapes with willows and mills and the marine world. And above all, duck families under the influence of Maris. Usually, a mother duck with a flock of ducklings can be seen, sleeping on the shore or swimming calmly in the water. The bank is often flanked by willows or birch trees with their white bark. Artz painted his subjects with a smooth, impressionistic touch, with a great sense of colour and incidence of light. In contrast to Maris' work, they are smaller in size and the brushstroke is somewhat less robust. But the similarity between the two painters is clearly the play of light and shadow. Constant Artz had an unerring eye for detail. That he was not only a gifted painter, but also an extremely skilled watercolourist. In addition to painting himself, Artz also gave drawing lessons. During the war period, he was even able to support his family by exchanging paintings for food. During the last years of his life, his eyesight deteriorated considerably, which is why works from the later period are broader in scope and less detailed. Artz died at the age of 80 in Soest, where he had lived for many years, in addition to a period of five years in Katwijk aan Zee. His work is in the collection of various museums and hangs in many households.