For many years, Pronk toured the
Dutch Republic in summer, usually on foot, to sketch views of cities, towns, and landscapes, as well as castles, stately homes and other buildings, documenting in detail when and where each sketch was made. Each of these field sketches would form the basis for one or several drawings, which he produced back in his studio. On his travels, he would occasionally cross the border into
Germany, as he did in 1729 for instance, when he made drawings around
Kleve and
Cologne. Together with his pupils
Jan de Beijer (1703–c.1780) and
Abraham de Haen (1707–1748), he produced over 700 drawings for
Het verheerlykt Nederland ("The glorified Netherlands"), a multi-volume work published in 1745-1774 documenting all the provinces of the Dutch Republic. Many of his drawings were turned into
engravings by other artists such as
Hendrik Spilman and
Simon Fokke. Pronk also contributing drawings to a 1760 atlas of the province of
Zeeland,
Een en twintig gezigten der stemmende steden van Zeeland en derzelver voorname gebouwen. Pronk's drawing technique developed rapidly in the period 1727 to 1731. He began to use subtle lighting and shadow effects and also added numerous anecdotal details to his drawings. Thereby the drawings attained not only documentary but also artistic value. His pupil and close friend Abraham de Haen wrote numerous poems in his honour. Pronk also dabbled in poetry himself. File:Voc hoorn 1727.jpg|
Oostindische werf,
Enkhuizen, 1727 File:Voc enkhuizen 1729.jpg|
Oostindisch huis,
Enkhuizen, 1729 File:C. Pronk Kasteel Ammersoyen circa 1730.jpg|Castle
Ammersoyen, c. 1730 File:Hunebed van Havelte door Cornelis Pronk.jpg|
Hunebed van Havelte, 1737 Tallrik i imarifärgerna, 1770-1775 - Hallwylska museet - 107689.tif|Two ladies with a parasol, 1770–1775 –
Hallwyl Museum == Life and career ==