Willem 'Wilm' Steelink jr. (Amsterdam, 1856 – Voorburg, 1928) was a Dutch painter, draughtsman and etcher, who has established himself in art history as an important representative of the second generation of the Hague School. His work, strongly rooted in the Dutch landscape and farm life, is characterised by a romantic-realistic approach, with attention to atmosphere, light and tranquillity.
Steelink jr. was the son of painter Willem Steelink sr., from whom he received his first painting lessons. Later he followed a formal education at the Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten in Amsterdam and the art academy in Antwerp. At an early age he developed a preference for depicting rural scenes: sheep in vast heathlands, farm interiors and simple village scenes. He worked a lot in the area around Laren, where he was part of the Laren School, an artists' colony that focused on simple country life.
His paintings are recognizable by their soft use of color, atmospheric lighting and dreamy touch. Sheep, often in herds in the open field, formed a recurring motif in his oeuvre — so much so that he became known as the ‘sheep painter’. At the same time, he was also a gifted graphic artist, whose etchings and lithographs were appreciated for their technical refinement.
Wilm Steelink Jr. enjoyed considerable appreciation during his lifetime, both in the Netherlands and internationally. His work was exhibited in Paris, London, Berlin and Chicago, and is now represented in museum collections such as the Singer Museum in Laren and the Rijksmuseum.
As an artist, he brought a harmonious synthesis of technique and feeling, and his work forms a tender ode to rural life as it was experienced at the end of the 19th century. He leaves behind an oeuvre that is among the most beloved of Dutch romantic landscape art.
