Fire in a Town at Night

After the death of Armand François Louis de Mestral de Saint-Saphorin on 9 November 1805 in Vienna, Count Johann Rudolph Czernin von Chudenitz attempted to secure the most valuable paintings for himself before the collection was auctioned on 19 May 1806. Neer’s "Fire in a Town at Night" is one of the three paintings Czernin was able to purchase for his own collection.
Conflagrations offered artists fascinating opportunities for attempting special lighting effects. A blazing fire determines events in this night piece. Several houses near the church are already in flames. People are trying to douse the fire by means of human chains, buckets and a ladder. The warm glow provides an effective contrast with the cool moonlight breaking through the clouds on the opposite bank.

Ducke Astrid: Aert van der Neer, Fire in a Town at Night, in: Ducke Astrid, Habersatter Thomas (Hrsg./Edi.): von | from 0 auf | to 100. Residenzgalerie Salzburg 1923-2023. Salzburg 2023, S./p. 184-185