Holland Dykes

In Holland Dykes John Henry Twachtman pictured the Dutch port of Dordrecht from a distance across the waters of the Thure River that links the city with the sea. Sketching directly on the etching plate, Twachtman placed a few wiry lines to represent clumps of reeds and the smooth, reflecting surface of the water. In the middle ground, he drew moored sailboats along the sliver of a dike lining the river. The pronounced verticality of masts and sails, silhouetted against the sky, lead the viewer's eye to a distant windmill on the opposite shore. In the left background, the skyline of Dordrecht features the distinctive dome of the Groothoofdspoort, a fifteenth-century town gate with a tower. In the sky, a few linear strokes hint at clouds. This unique impression records the third of four states of this print, one of the artist's loveliest etched landscapes; it was printed on a sheet already faintly imprinted with the final state of Twachtman's earlier etching Harbor at Night (TF 1996.51), another Dordrecht scene.

Twachtman was captivated by the quality of light and the quiet beauty of the low-lying Dutch countryside with its abundant waterways. He first visited the area around Dordrecht during his honeymoon in 1881. When he returned in 1885, the scenery inspired him to create several paintings, pastels, and etchings. Impressions of Twachtman's prints made during the artist's lifetime, such as this one, are exceedingly rare: only three of his twenty-nine etchings were published before his death. In 1888, Christian Klackner, a New York dealer, published an edition of Holland Dykes. Several of Twachtman's other prints were published in 1921; the artist's son Alden supervised these posthumous editions, published by New York dealer Frederick Keppel & Company.

The Studio of Nature, 1860-1910: The Terra Collection in Context (L’atelier de la Nature, 1860-1910. Invitation à la Terra Collection). Terra Foundation for American Art with the Musée des Impressionnismes Giverny (organizers). Venue: Musée des Impressionnismes Giverny, France, September 12, 2020–January 3, 2021. [exh. cat. in French]

Baskett, Mary Welsh. John Henry Twachtman: American Impressionist Painter as a Printmaker: A Catalogue Raisonné of His Prints. New York: Meg Hausberg, 1999. No. 16, pp. 92–93. [specific reference to Terra print on p. 92 (third state)].Bourguignon, Katherine and Valerie Reis. The Studio of Nature, 1860-1910: The Terra Collection in Context. (exh. cat, Terra Foundation for American Art with the Musée des Impressionnismes Giverny). Paris, France: Réunion des musées nationaux, 2020.  Pl. 47, p. 116 (color).