Landscape with mountains and a lake, figures in the foreground
Medium
Black chalk
Dimensions
sheet: 6 1/8 x 9 7/8 in. (15.6 x 25.1 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of Harry G. Sperling, 1971
Accession Number
1975.131.155
Tags
Art Historical Context
**Landscape with Mountains and a Lake**, created by Dutch artist Jan van der Meer the in 1687, the serene beauty of nature through the intimate medium of black chalk on a modest sheet measuring just 6 1/8 x 9 7/8 inches. Van der Meer, active during the Dutch Golden Age, was known for his landscape drawings that evoke the dramatic interplay of water, sky, and rugged terrain—here, majestic mountains rise behind a tranquil lake, with men and women figures dotting the foreground for scale and human warmth. Black chalk, prized for its soft, velvety tones, allowed van der Meer to masterfully sugges...