Surrealistic Landscape, 1929

Jan Zondag (1891 -1982) was a Dutch painter and draftsman born in the village of Annen in Drenthe. He was originally on track to follow his family into farming but chose to study teaching in Groningen, eventually becoming a schoolteacher. Even while teaching, he drew and painted, inspired by the Drenthe landscape and artists he saw.

In 1922 Zondag left his teaching career behind and moved to France with his partner, where he lived near Paris and worked in places such as Montfort‑l’Amaury. There he was exposed to the French art scene and met other artists, but he preferred a quiet life devoted to his own painting. He and his family spent summers in the Netherlands and winters in the south of France, producing landscapes, river scenes, portraits, and studies in watercolor, pastel, and oil.

Zondag’s work is often described as embodying simplicity, calm, and a gentle sensitivity to nature; his landscapes and other scenes convey a serene mood and a feeling of light and quiet reflection. After returning to the Netherlands in the late 1930s, he lived and worked in various towns including Eemnes, Blaricum, and later Laren, where he belonged to the Gooische Schildersvereniging (the local painters’ association). He continued to paint throughout his life, and his work was exhibited in galleries across the Netherlands.

Zondag died in 1982 in Sint‑Jansklooster, leaving behind a body of work appreciated for its gentle lyricism and evocative landscapes