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Jan van Goyen was the Dutch painter who most effectively captured the water-drenched atmosphere of Dutch seascapes, the daily activities of fishermen on the flat shores of Holland, and the great rolling clouds on its wide, low horizons. The simplicity of composition, the use of near monochrome, for the most part shades of brown and grey and the greyish skies heavy with rain-clouds which play an important part in his seascapes all differentiate van Goyen's paintings from those of his contemporaries who generally preferred to paint stormy seas complete with ships of war, and the buildings of a port in the background. Van Goyen concentrated on the sea itself and only made use of such subsidiary details - boats, fishermen or seamen - as were absolutely necessary to indicate the environment.
The painting is signed as VG on the boat at the left side.
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