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Gopnik, Blake 'Pride of Place': Dutch Cityscapes of theGolden Age at the National Gallery of Art, Washington Post (Feb.3, 2009)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/02/AR2009020203455.html?hpid=artslot

n "##$% a &'tch artist called (an )an der *eyden painted a grand

)iew o+ Amsterdam,s newly 'ilt town hall% declared the ighth

onder o+ the orld -- y &'tchmen% at least.

't when yo' +irst come across that pict're in 1ride o+ lace:

&'tch ityscapes o+ the olden Age%1 a +ascinating new show at

the ational allery o+ Art% yo' wonder what yo'ng )an der

*eyden had een smo6ing when he painted it. 78his is

Amsterdam% a+ter all. 8he hall,s great c'pola loo6s thin and

drawn% as tho'gh a onty ython hand o+ od has gi)en it a

s;'ee

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Dther pict'res similarly +orce yo' to mo)e sideways. hen yo' +irst come across &aniel >osmaer,s )iew o+ the

s6yline o+ &el+t% as glimpsed thro'gh the archways o+ a pa)ilion on the city,s edge% it loo6s tremendo'sly iosmaer,s 1&el+t%1 't once yo',re att'ned to the techni;'e% it pops

'p again and again. 7Coo6 +or the receding lines in a pict're,s +loor tiles% or pa)ing stones% or architect're: nstead

o+ eing +oc'sed on a point in the middle o+ the hori

and mo)ie cameras always do.

)en pict'res that arely hint at their perspecti)e may as6 yo' to sidle cra-wise 'p to them. Coo6 +rom straight

ahead and se)eral +eet away at Aelert 'yp,s great image o+ the aas Ri)er at &ordrecht% +rom the ational

allery,s own holdings% and the wide-eamed ship at its +ar right seems almost as ro'nd as a arrel. 8a6e the ship

in +rom m'ch nearer 't +ar o)er to the le+t% +rom ao't the point o+ )iew o+ the important o++icials eing rowed to

it% and this lead ship s'ddenly slims down% proecting o't toward yo' and almost ready to pass y. 8he great aas%

instead o+ loo6ing li6e a pool in the painting,s +oregro'nd% now seems li6e a long channel that yo'r ga

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8he 6ind o+ eploratory )iewing that &'tch pict'res in)ite also rings them into contact with other oects incl'ded

in this show: precio's oo6s% allegorical prints and atlases o+ 'ran maps meant to ill'strate the special lo)e o+

cities in "$th-cent'ry *olland. 8he way these period arti+acts present their teeming contents parallels the way this

show,s paintings wor6. n oth cases% their matter comes distri'ted thro'gho't% and yo' ha)e to ta6e time to p'll

o't e)ery separate particle o+ +act% coming close eno'gh to dig aro'nd +or them. 8hat,s 'st how we aren,t trained

to )iew a pict're% now. 8hin6 o+ a little snapshot held at arm,s length% or an image in a oo6% or e)en a color

reprod'ction o+ an Dld aster painting proected on a screen at the +ront o+ a classroom: e ta6e them in at once%

+rom edge-to-edge% as a 6ind o+ integrated pac6age. As a completely legile s'r+ace% more than as an arti+icial

world with things 'ried inside.

Fo now% with all this in mind% it,s worth ta6ing another loo6 at e)en the most normal-loo6ing paintings in this

show% y s'ch well-6nown +ig'res as ieter de *ooch E (an Fteen. All yo' ha)e to do is come close -- a +ew old

images s'r)i)e that show &'tch )iewers with their noses almost 'p against the paintings they,re admiring -- E

e)erything ao't them starts to change.

A seemingly straight+orward pict're s'ch as (aco )an Dchter)elt,s "Street Musicians in the Doorway of a House"

o++ers a whole new eperience. Grom a distance% the home,s marle-tiled +loor seems almost tipped 'p toward 's%

as tho'gh yo',d ha)e to wal6 'phill to get o't the +ront doorB the tiles in its near corners don,t e)en seem ;'ite

s;'are. 8hat +loor also seems to ta6e 'p more than its +air share o+ spacein the pict're,s composition. ome m'ch

closer to the pict're% howe)er% and all o+ this comes right: 8he +loor now seems elow yo'% etending +orward at

90 degrees to yo'r odyB the angles o+ its tiles s'ddenly correct themsel)esB what loo6ed li6e an ecess epanse o+

+loor disappears. And most important% yo',re now inected right into )an Dchter)elt,s whimsical scene% with yo'r

attention -- and yo'r identi+ication -- +orced to oscillate etween the satin-clad 'rghers and the eggars at their

door. 8he pict're,s composition now ta6es place in space and across time% +rom near to +ar and side to side as yo'

slowly eplore its scene% rather than all at once across its +lat s'r+ace.

Gor once% we,re letting these pict'res do the wor6 their &'tch masters had in mind +or them. 8hey get 's to pl'nge

deep inside a crowded world% +'ll o+ st'++ to e eplored% rather than simply standing ac6 to ta6e in a pretty

pict're.

'rator,s erspecti)e: Remrandt E the &'tch olden Age Fal)ador Falort-ons% h.&.% head o+ the 'ropean art

department E 8he li