Thank you for your wonderful feedback about The Windmill. I have also been asked many questions about the beautiful painting used upon the cover of the book.
I think you’ll agree, the cover works really well and looks fantastic…but does the choice of this particular painting mean more to the story and why was I drawn to it?
The Windmill at Wijk bij Duurstede, Jacob Isaacksz van Ruisdael, c. 1668 – c. 1670.
The windmill rises up majestically, defying the dark rain clouds and overshadowing the castle and the church of Wijk bij Duurstede. The River Lek flows in the foreground. This painting is world famous, and rightly so. In this impressive composition, Ruisdael united all the typical Dutch elements – the low-lying land, the water and the expansive sky – manipulating them to converge on the equally characteristic Dutch watermill.
(Description taken from https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/rijksstudio/artists/jacob-isaacksz-van-ruisdael/objects#/SK-C-211,0 )
Ruisdael is a master in scene setting and the clouds draw you in to the painting adding an air of mystery, as if it had a story to tell all…and perhaps it will.
The windmill in the painting stands so majestically as the light reflects off the bricks but it is surrounded by ominous clouds. This sense of foreboding symbolised in the dramatic scene could be comparative to the historical section of the book, to war-torn Holland in 1940 and the darkness that was approaching.
The sails stand high and proud and you can almost imagine them slowly turning and creaking in their perpetual cycle… will memories or images linger in these cycles?
In the book, The Windmill, the inclusion of this painting begins with small hints of its presence in various places noted by different characters that interconnects with them and leads to a powerful spiritual awakening.
How could a painting mean so much, trigger so much and why? Find out and begin your journey, read The Windmill.
I was so lucky to have the permission of the Rijksmusem to allow me the use of this wonderful painting as a wrap-around cover for the book. They have since requested a copy of the book.
Please see the link below which gives you a short audio that explains the composition and history of the painting.
The Windmill would be a great Christmas gift for friends or family, or if you just fancy it for yourself then please click the link below.
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Life Stories - K. Lewis Adair 