Early Spring in Holland
Datec. 1890 - 1905
MediumOil on canvas
DimensionsCanvas: 35 7/8 × 51 1/4 inches (91.1 × 130.2 cm)
Framed: 47 3/4 × 62 15/16 × 3 5/16 inches (121.3 × 159.9 × 8.4 cm)
Credit LineMuseum purchase.
Object number1908.5
CopyrightThe images and text contained on this page are owned by Telfair Museums or used by the Museum with permission from the owners. Unauthorized reproduction, transmission or display of these materials is prohibited with the exception of items deemed “fair use” as defined by U.S. and international copyright laws.Label TextWith its high-key colors, broad brush strokes, and sensitivity to natural light, Early Spring in Holland reveals the influence exerted by impressionism on George Hitchcock’s mature work. The painting’s horizontal format emphasizes the long rows of bulbs and the flatness of the Dutch terrain, while the lavender gray sky reflects Hitchcock’s deep appreciation for the brilliant, opalescent light of the Netherlands.
Born into a patrician family in Providence, Rhode Island, George Hitchcock graduated from Brown University in 1872 and then attended Harvard Law School. He practiced law for several years before deciding in 1879 to move to Europe to pursue a career in art. He worked and studied in London, Paris, The Hague, and Düsseldorf until 1883, when he settled in the Egmonds, a cluster of villages on the North Sea in Holland. There, he and American artist Gari Melchers founded the Egmond school, which is associated with sunlit Dutch landscapes and genre scenes featuring traditionally costumed figures.
