ludolf bakhuizen (1630 - 1708)
Ludolf Bakhuizen was a Dutch painter of the 17th and early 18th centuries. He is known as an outstanding master of seascapes. Bakhuizen also painted biblical themes and portraits of his contemporaries as well as engravings and miniature models of ships.
Ludolf Bakhuizen is considered one of the best marine painters of the Golden Age of Dutch painting. Among the admirers of his work were many influential European rulers, including the Russian Tsar Peter the Great. The master met Peter I, who visited Amsterdam in the mid-1690s and, according to contemporaries, even managed to give some painting lessons to the Russian tsar. In addition, Вakhuizen made models of all kinds of ship designs on commission from Peter the Great.
Toward the end of his life, the Amsterdam authorities honored Bakhuizen by opening his own gallery on the top floor of the City Hall for his achievements in the fine arts. The best masterpieces of his work are now preserved in museums in the Netherlands, Germany, England, France, and Italy.
Jacob Esselens was a Dutch landscape painter and draughtsman of the Golden Age of Dutch painting.
Esselens was a cloth merchant and traveled to Germany, France, Italy, England, and Scotland. During these trips he made many depictions of landscapes and cityscapes, some of which were included in Van der Heem's Atlas.
The influence of Rembrandt and Simon de Vlieger can be traced in the works of the self-taught artist Esselens. In addition to many topographically accurate landscapes and urban landscapes, the artist created fantasy landscapes in which he emphasized animal and human figures.
