The Legacy of the Van Otterloo Collection
The Rose-Marie and Eijk van Otterloo Collection represents a significant assembly of seventeenth-century Dutch and Flemish art. These works arrived at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston through a series of landmark gifts and endowments. The collection was established to support the Center for Netherlandish Art, a dedicated resource for scholarship. This initiative provides a foundation for the study of the visual culture of the Dutch Republic and Flanders. The holdings include a substantial library of over 20,000 monographs, catalogues, and rare books assembled by Egbert Haverkamp-Begemann.
The paintings within this collection reflect the intersection of art, commerce, and science during the Golden Age. The works are organized to examine specific themes, such as the role of women as patrons and the development of the modern art market. The collection also addresses the connections between still life painting and the global trade of the era.
Selected Works and Artists
The collection contains works by several prominent masters of the seventeenth century. These paintings demonstrate the technical precision and varied subject matter characteristic of the period. The following artists are represented within the catalog:
- Jacob van Ruisdael
- Jan Steen
- Frans Hals
- Adriaen Coorte
- Emanuel de Witte
- Hendrick Avercamp
- Jan van de Cappelle
- Jan van Huysum
- Rachel Ruysch
- Rembrandt
Specific pieces include The drawing lesson for a boy holding a hat (1663) by Jan Steen and Roses, tulips and other flowers in a glass vase on a marble ledge (1709) by Rachel Ruysch. The collection also holds Portrait of a 62-year-old Woman, possibly Aeltje Pietersdr Uylenburgh (1632) by Rembrandt and Winter Landscape with Skaters near a Village (1610) by Hendrick Avercamp. These works are part of a larger group of 113 paintings donated in 2017.
Institutional Impact
The presence of these works has fundamentally altered the scale of Netherlandish holdings at the institution. The 2017 gift nearly doubled the existing collection of Dutch and Flemish paintings. This expansion supports the mission of the Center for Netherlandish Art to serve as a primary resource for research in the United States. The collection is displayed in renovated galleries designed to facilitate a detailed examination of the nexus between art and the social structures of the seventeenth century.
