Fishermen hauling a Net

This painting is a companion piece to another painting by van Goyen, also in the National Gallery's Collection: 'A River Scene, with a Hut on an Island'. In the centre of the landscape in the far distance is a windmill and on the right, a church. The location has not been identified.

The paint and ground are very thin, so that the vertical grain of the wood is visible. The umber-coloured ground is exploited to great effect in the rapid handling of the sky, which contrasts with the linear style of the details of the boats and figures.