Lot 486: Daily activities, Batavia

Auguste de Molins (French, 1821-1890)
Daily activities, Batavia
signed, inscribed with title and dated 'A. De Molins. Batavia.1859.' (lower right)
oil on canvas
55 x 93.5 cm.

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At the beginning of the 19th Century the old city of Batavia was largely demolished and replaced by a new set of buildings, parks and boulevards in the style of the French Empire and the Neoclassicists. Many buildings were constructed under the supervision of the governor-general of the Dutch East Indies Herman Willem Daendels, who was also in charge of building the fashionable French area in the Rijswijk district as depicted in the present lot by Auguste de Molins in 1859.

Auguste de Molins, a French artist who traveled extensively in the region around 1860, produced numerous very high quality prints documenting his travels there. The present painting is a remarkable early oil painting of the city first called Sunda Kelapa and Jayakarta.
The particular intersection of Molenvliet and Tanahabang which is shown here was also known as the Harmonie, named after the Harmonie Batavia Societeit, the fagade of which can be seen on the left side of the present lot. The impressive neo-classical building was constructed between 1808 and 1815 and was considered to be the largest of its kind in South-East Asia. It was the most popular meeting place for Europeans to talk, drink, smoke and dance in Batavia at that time. For the hard working plantation owners, visiting the soos was the only escape from their otherwise tough life. Every two or three weeks the plantation owners would travel for hours so that they could spend an evening there. The Harmonie Batavia Societeit later became known as the Djakarta Club.

On the right of the present painting, the boutique of the popular French fashion designers Oger Frhres is depicted, which attracted the elite of the colonial community during the 19th century. This building does still exist and is now in use by a travel agency. In fact, very few buildings remain from Batavias colonial days. In 1985 the Harmonie Batavia Societeit was unfortunately demolished, but the present painting by De Molins gives us a striking representation of Batavia during the heyday of Dutch colonialism.