Emil Maetzel, Night fishing, 1954 by Atelier Liesjes

This painting by Emil Maetzel, titled Night Fishing (or Night Fishing) from 1954, depicts an atmospheric nocturnal scene by the sea.
In an expressionist style with simplified, angular figures and a limited colour palette of blues, greens and yellows, four naked or half-naked men stand and sit by a fishing net suspended over a structure. On the left, a figure sits relaxed, in the centre is a standing man wearing a yellow skirt-like garment and holding a fishing net or catch, on the right a seated figure. In the background, a dark sea with a rising (or setting) moon and a faint boat.
The atmosphere is calm and mysterious, with primitivist influences (angular bodies, tribal appearance) typical of Maetzel's later work. The fishing net and the sea refer directly to night fishing. Bottom left the signature "E. Maetzel" with year.
A superb example of his post-expressionist figurative style from the '50s!

Emil Maetzel (1877-1955) was a German-Dutch painter who was mainly active in the first half of the 20th century. He worked and exhibited in the Netherlands, among other countries, and was part of an art climate in which figuration and expression remained important, despite the rise of abstract movements. Maetzel painted portraits, landscapes and figure pieces and had a clear interest in human emotion and inner experience.

Emil Maetzel's painting style is predominantly expressionist and figurative. His work is characterised by powerful brushstrokes, a free use of colour and sometimes slightly distorted forms to enhance feeling and tension. Colours are often intense and contrasting, not purely true to nature but used expressively. In his portraits, the emphasis is less on exact likeness and more on character and mood. In doing so, Maetzel is in line with expressionism, which focuses on emotion and personal interpretation.