Van Ghell, 19th century

VAN GHELL (19th century).
"Emigrants in a Winter Landscape".
Oil on canvas.
Signed in the lower left corner.
Measurements: 38 x 48 cm.; 63 x 72 cm.(frame).
Van Ghell was a landscape and genre painter, who was active during the last third of the 19th century. The few surviving paintings by this artist, who probably came from a region of the Kingdom of Prussia, are characterised by a combination of overwhelming landscapes in which crowds of people of generally humble origin try to find their way in the midst of a nature with an inclement climate: emigrants, refugees, soldiers tired after a battle.... Here, the misty horizon is tinged with the rich cold tones of winter, bathing a snowy landscape in glacial beauty through which a group of emigrants is advancing. Perhaps they are fleeing war, or poverty. The author conveys his empathy for these humble people, captured in vivid, realistic language.