Dwelling Built into a Ruin

Entry

Defining this sheet a drawing made in Rome by the ‘elder Weenix’, as it was claimed by the recto inscription of a yet unidentified eighteenth-century hand, is problematic for two reasons. Neither is the draughtsmanship compatible with authentic drawings by Jan Baptist Weenix, nor is it a Roman motif, the church spire in the right background being clearly of Northern character. The link with Jan Baptist Weenix’s name probably stems from a remote likeness with drawings by him such as Ruined Well in front of a Ruin and Ruined Bastion, both in the Albertina, Vienna (inv. nos. 9561 and 9106). That idea, however, should be discarded in view of weaknesses such as the repetitive and uniform brushstrokes to mark bricks and vegetation.² Details such as the open doorway to the right, with only a gaping void behind, appear incomplete and may point to the hand of a copyist. A source model, however, has yet to be identified. The subject-matter – a ruin with additions used as dwellings – resembles paintings by Emanuel Murant (1622-c. 1700), such as Italianate Landscape with Ruins in the Städel Museum, Frankfurt-am-Main (inv. no. 1127). The latter features a similar shed placed prominently against a ruined portal (derived from the ruins of Brederode). As a draughtsman, Murant is still a shadowy figure, but there are apparently stylistic overlaps with drawings by Weenix.³

Annemarie Stefes, 2018