Abcoude Lagoons (The Netherlands)
Ca. 1877. Oil on canvas mounted on cardboard.Not on display
Plants and reeds grow above the waters of the canal, protruding above the surface of the water. There is vegetation on both sides, more abundant on the right, with bushes and trees whose branches are outlined against an overcast sky. The background of woodland is silhouetted against the horizon line. This study is the sketch of Abcoude Lagoons from a private collection, dated 1878. The identical reference to the landscape, to which Haes has added in the final painting a thicker foliage of trees and some waterfowl skimming the surface of the lagoon, serve as testament to his time in Holland before this date. This technically confirms that all the Prado’s studies of Holland were painted during this period, although the final execution of some of the paintings may have been later. Very similar to this landscape is (P5777), painted from a more open angle, covering almost the entire width of the canal and (P6252), also probably taken in the same place, to which has been added the figure of a loaded barge navigating the waters of the canal.
Gutiérrez Márquez, Ana, Carlos de Haes en el Museo del Prado, 1826-1898: catálogo razonado, Madrid, Museo Nacional del Prado, 2002, p.336
