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Hendrick Vroom (1566-1640)
View of Delft, 1634. Canvas, 71 × 162 cm.

Delft, Museum Het Prinsenhof, inv.nr.S 131. Presented to the city of Delft by the painter in 1634.

After an adventurous youth, Vroom settled down in Haarlem for a life as an entrepreneur of seascape painting, a specialty of which he was the first professional practitioner. His subject was not the ocean deeps but the coast, usually with recognizable landmarks, and often with identifiable vessels. Many of his works were based on formulas which he filled in with different details. He painted Zandvoort seen from offshore in 1635, for example, in a composition nearly identical to that which he used for a view of Scheveningen twelve years earlier, while his portrayals of the inland ports of Amsterdam, Alkmaar and Haarlem are mutually distinguishable only to those who know the skylines of those cities. Vroom would offer such paintings to the town government, either for sale or as a gift for which he would accept an honorarium in return.

This view of Delft from the north is unusual for the large amount of land in the scene, and for the figures working on it. Otherwise it fits into one of Vroom's schematic types, which was also employed for a view of Veere in Zeeland. We would be inclined to see it as a purely commercial product – albeit an unusually captivating one were it not for the following document in the Delft archives: 'On June 23, 1634, Master Vroom of Haarlem presented the burgomasters of this city with the portrayal of the city of Delft, painted by his own hand, in regard of the special affection he has always felt for this city, his mother being buried in the Old Church, and the aforesaid Master Vroom having learned his art here in his youth.' By way of thanks, the burgomasters gave the painter 150 guilders.

Bol 1973, p.26.