Lot 1131 Dα

Hendrik Kobell was born in Rotterdam in 1751. His marine works form a clear and deliberate link to the tradition of 17th century Dutch maritime painting, especially that of Willem van de Velde and Ludolf Backhuysen. However, he often includes 18th century ships in his works, presumably to emphasise that his paintings were in fact late 18th and not 17th century works. The two-masted vessel in the right of this piece, a so-called Kof or Kofschip, is such an example of a type of ship that didn't exist in the 17th century, and here forms the centre of the composition. The vessel is depicted in bright light and is impressively rendered in both the quality of the draughtsmanship and the painting. This same fineness is apparent in the foamy sea spray of the waves in the lower edge of the image.
Kobell depicts a dramatic scene in classic Dutch tradition: The ship's crew has apparently been surprised by the gathering storm, and are shown frantically securing the sails and circumnavigating the jagged rock formation whilst lightning flashes across the darkening sky. Similarly dramatic motifs are depicted in two drawings by Kobell which are today kept in the Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt (inv. AE 1077) and the drawings cabinet of the Frankfurter Städel (inv. 2859).
We would like to thank Dr. Gerlinde de Beer in Hamburg for her kind help in cataloguing this piece.