Reading woman near a window with view on the Dordrecht Minster

In many works of Abraham showed van Strij an inventive and intelligent follower of the Golden Age. The composition of this panel is reminiscent of Pietsser de Hooch (1629-1684), the bright palette that of Aelbert Cuyp, while the reading a woman is a known motif of Nicolaes Maes.

In this painting van Strij let himself known as Dordtenaar, by the half-opened window, the Great Church of Dordrecht xan be recognized.

The drawing lesson

The inspiration for this panel was the work of seventeenth-century genre painters. The theme of the student who works for a classical sculpture is already seen by Jan Steen (1626-1679). The composition of the two look through's  based Abraham van Strij likely from Pietsser de Hooch (1629-1684).

The painting style with clear colors and the font style brush lining is typical for Van Strij's own time, the period around 1800. In the painting a statue is seen, a copy is a work of Lysippus Greek sculptor (4th century BC). The image, the old Silenus, who acted as an educator of the young god Dionysus.

Woman and drinking soldier

As a source of inspiration for this painting, served a bar scene of the 17th-century genre painter Pietsser de Hooch. De Hooch and other painters of the Golden Age were important examples for Abraham and his brother Jacob van Strij. The brothers admired the old masters to their sophisticated appearance of the light. In their work they tried their predecessors even to surpass in brightness.

As in 17th-century paintings often is the case, this scene has a double bottom. The sword between the legs of the hussar is impossible as an innocent motive to be seen. Also van Strij's contemporaries would have understood what these cheerful drinker actually want.

Still-life with flowers, fruits and a fish can

In van Strij's oeuvre, this is a rare type of still life. Interestingly, the combination of very different objects and the unusual motif of the bowl with goldfish.

In the seventeenth century still lifes often contained references to the transience of life. At the end of the eighteenth century, such meanings mostly disappeared. The decorative and pictorial elements were then the most important.

The beggars

A woman and child

Interior with sitting man with fur cap

Stable interior with woman and wheel barrow

Stop at an inn

Talking about art

A cherries saleswoman at the front door

A woman sits at the door and shows her daughter the cherries that a woman at the door has for sale. Right blows a cat in the windowsill to a dog. Near a window a rifle and other belongings of a hunter.

The drawing lesson

A boy is under the supervision of a master drawing a plaster statue of a nude portrait. In the background are several paintings.

The housewife

Interior with a mother sitting at the cradle of her child. The woman's lap has a basket with vegetables. On the left in a corner a press.

The boiler barnster

In a kitchen a cook is in the process of sanding a copper kettle. On a wooden bench is an earthenware pot and lid.

Young Sweethearts

A Winter Scene

Abraham van Strij painted few winter scenes (he draw rather more). In this excellent and beautifully preserved example we see the artist's interest in the effects of light, and his delight in detail, such as the view through the little gate with a man holding a bucket in the late sunlight of a winter day.

An Extensive River Landscape

This painting, depicting an extensive river landscape with a boeier at anchor and horsemen on the shore with an elegant couple and a dog, a ferry with cows in the background, formed part of a rare set of six wall-hangings by the brothers Jacob and Abraham van Strij. Only very few complete or almost complete sets have survived, one of which, a set of seven, is now in the Dordrechts Museum, Dordrecht, and another set of five is in the Haags Gemeentemuseum, The Hague.

Wall-hangings became very popular in the second half of the 18th century, when several factories in Amsterdam were established producing these wall-hangings for the canal houses. The workshop of the Strij brothers also produced wall-hangings which are often signed by only one artist, the main contributor. However, in most cases the hand of both painters can be seen.

 Interior with mother, child and dog

For sale (May 2009) €75.000-€100.000