The Soignes Forest with Figures

Together with Lodewijk de Vadder, Jacques d’Arthois belonged to the Sonian Forest school of painters during the second half of the seventeenth century. In broad and powerful brushstrokes, he painted tall trees with rich foliage and lush undergrowth next to ravines, sandy hills and earthen footpaths, ponds and moss and ivy-covered tree stumps. The most striking element in this forest is the ruined tree in the centre of the composition. The figures, which are all moving in the same direction, are remarkably small compared to the surrounding landscape. These were usually painted by other painters, including David Teniers the Younger.