Living a traditional existence as a well-traveled continental artist, William Dommersen visited the shores of Holland, Belgium, France, England and Italy. He produced paintings which celebrate his journeys with his father and the essence of the local maritime cultures. His accomplished works often combine the brightest qualities of landscapes with the cool mystery of the waterways.
Alive with colorful qualities and spacial architectural details, Dommersen’s paintings advocate the universal normalcy of the European commoners. Agricultural and mariner types serenely populate nearly all his works, seemingly celebrating the simpler lifestyles one would invariably have contact with, but possibly passing on by. His interpretations of the working folk in their daily environs are some of the best period images available.
William was born in Utrecht, Holland, as was his father, Pieter Cornelis Dommersen, a highly regarded artist as well. The family anglicized their surname “Dommershuizen” once they made England a permanent home in the late 1800s. Author denys Brook-Hart wrote of the artist “although his best work is now recognized as being highly meritorious … I think it is still somewhat undervalued.” Most of his known works are of the towns and villages on the Dutch waterways, yet many other European shores were covered by the disconcerting artist.