Footnotes

• Cornelius Vreedenburg's first experience with a paint brush was with his father who was a house painter in the town of Woerden. Even at a young age, the artist showed both his talent and creativity, painting views of his his home town as well as still lifes which he painted with great precision. Thanks to a Royal Subsidy in 1912 and 1913, Vreedenburg was able to leave commercial painting. During this time he received guidance from both O.W.A. Roelofs (1877-1920) and W.B. Tholen (1861-1931).
  
  Having undertaken a number of foreign trips, Vreedenburg eventually settled in Laren in 1918. From there he concentrated on painting both the surrounding landscape as well as the nearby lakes of Loosdrecht and the Kaag. Vreedenburg’s work from the period immediately after the First World War is very much in the tradition of The Hague School.
  
  After moving to the artistic community of Laren, Vreedenburg executed several views of Amsterdam, mostly on a small scale. Painted in 1920, the current lot shows that the artist had fully embraced the Impressionist palette, making it very much his own. The view is suffused in a warm light typical of the beginning of the Autumn in Amsterdam as bargemen move vessels busily through the locks. This work, which is exceptionally large and ambitious in its composition, shows Vreedenburgh at the height of his skills as an artist.
  
  The St Anthony Locks were constructed in 1602 for the dual purpose of defending Amsterdam and to control the flow of water from the Amstel river through the city. The first known view of the locks is a drawing by Rembrandt who had his home and studio directly across from the view depicted in the present lot. The building shown here still exists and has changed little since its construction in 1695.