#Dutch Golden Age

Jacobus Vrel (act. ca. 1650-1670), A Woman at a Window Waving at a Child, Fondation Custodia, Frits Lugt Collection, Paris Artist Stories

A Dutch Mystery: Jacobus Vrel

Jacobus Vrel is a ghostly figure in art history because, up to this moment, there is almost no official data about him. No record of his existence...

Irina Diana Calu 27 May 2024

Women Artists

Vanitas and Women Artists: A Brief of Mortality

Vanitas is an art genre that flourished in the 16th and 17th centuries, especially in the Netherlands. The term originates from the Latin word for...

Errika Gerakiti 23 May 2024

Art History 101

A Small Guide to Still Life Symbols

You may think that all those marvelous Dutch still lifes from the 16th and 17th centuries were just some random sets of fruits, vegetables, and...

Zuzanna Stańska, Nicole Ganbold 3 May 2024

Judith Leyster, Man Offering Money to a Young Woman, 1631, oil on panel, Mauritshuis, Den Haag, Netherlands. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Man Offering Money to a Young Woman by Judith Leyster

Judith Leyster was a powerhouse female artist of the Dutch Golden Age. Man Offering Money to a Young Woman is one of her many...

James W Singer 31 March 2024

Johannes Vermeer, The Milkmaid, ca. 1660, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Netherlands. Wikimedia Commons (public domain). Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Milkmaid by Johannes Vermeer

Among many representations of domestic scenes of respectable Dutch middle-class households, there is one that never ceases to impress and capture the...

Giordana Goretti 31 March 2024

News

Gesina ter Borch’s Sole Signed Painting Emerges at an Art Fair

Recently Rijksmuseum announced an acquisition of a highly sought-after newly emerged work by a Dutch Golden Age artist, Gesina ter Borch. This...

Nicole Ganbold 15 March 2024

Exhibition view of Frans Hals, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Netherlands. Photo by Rijksmuseum/Albertine Dijkema. Review

The Frans Hals Experience at the Rijksmuseum

Frans Hals, one of the most innovative and fascinating artists in Western art history, is making international headlines at the Rijksmuseum.

Nicole Ganbold 14 March 2024

Dine & Wine

Baroque Foodies – Social Media of the Dutch Golden Age

Carefully arranged plates of food surrounded by carefully planned out backgrounds, images with hidden meanings, a snapshot of wealth… What may...

Rachel Witte 13 March 2024

Women Artists

Maria Sibylla Merian. An Artist Who Changed Science Forever

In the 17th century, it has been widely believed that insects were just spontaneously born of mud, dirt, or rotting flesh, but that notion has been...

Nicole Ganbold 9 March 2024

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Threatened Swan by Jan Asselijn

Swans are normally characterized as graceful birds. They are magnificent and majestic. However, Jan Asselijn displays another side of these elegant...

James W Singer 25 February 2024

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Gallant Conversation by Gerard ter Borch

Gallant Conversation by Gerard ter Borch is a genre painting filled with a mysterious narrative. What are the three people doing? Why are they in a...

James W Singer 18 February 2024

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Vase with Flowers by Rachel Ruysch

Let’s discuss one of the greatest still-life artists: Rachel Ruysch. Still-life paintings do not draw the crowds at museums. They are often...

James W Singer 28 January 2024