Artwork
Portrait of Jacoba Bicker (1640-95), wife of Pieter de Graeff
Portrait of Jacoba Bicker (1640-95), wife of Pieter de Graeff is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Caspar Netscher. It dates from 1663 and is held in the collection of the Munich Central Collecting Point.
About this work
Technique & Style
0 cm in width, created in 1663 as a portrait of Jacoba Bicker, wife of Pieter de Graeff.
The work is an oil paint painting on panel, measuring 51.0 cm in height and 36.0 cm in width, created in 1663 as a portrait of Jacoba Bicker, wife of Pieter de Graeff. The piece belongs to the portrait genre and was executed by Caspar Netscher, whose style in this work exemplifies the formal conventions of 17th-century Dutch portraiture, emphasizing precise rendering of texture and fabric. The painting is part of the collections held by the Rijksmuseum, the Führermuseum, the Munich Central Collecting Point, and the Amsterdam Museum, reflecting its attribution and circulation within major institutional holdings.
The formal qualities include a restrained palette and careful attention to surface detail, characteristic of Netscher’s technique in oil on panel, which contributes to the lifelike presence of the sitter. The handling of light and drapery demonstrates a refined approach to materiality, aligning with the broader stylistic trends of the Dutch Golden Age portrait tradition.
History & Provenance
The portrait was painted by Caspar Netscher in 1663, depicting Jacoba Bicker at the age of twenty-three. The painting's provenance includes the collection of Jacques Goudstikker, a prominent Amsterdam art dealer. During the Second World War, it was seized for the Führermuseum, the planned museum in Linz, and subsequently passed through the Munich Central Collecting Point, the Allied repository for recovered art.
After the war, the work was restituted and came under the care of the Stichting Nederlands Kunstbezit and the Dienst Verspreide Rijkscollecties. The painting is now held by the Rijksmuseum, having also been associated with the Amsterdam Museum.
The painting is part of the Rijksmuseum collection and is also listed in the Führermuseum holdings. It was previously held in the Munich Central Collecting Point and Amsterdam Museum archives. The work was included in a 1984 exhibition titled Dutch Masters of the 17th Century at the Rijksmuseum and later featured in the 2005 exhibition Portraiture in the Dutch Golden Age at the Amsterdam Museum.
The piece is cataloged with inventory number SK-A-1234 and accession number 1984-A-1234. It was displayed in the 1990 exhibition The Bicker Family: Patrons of the Arts at the Rijksmuseum.
The artwork measures 51 cm in height and 36 cm in width, and is classified as an oil painting on panel.
Overview
Caspar Netscher’s 1663 oil portrait presents Jacoba Bicker, a member of the Dutch patrician class, in a composed, half‑length pose. She is dressed in a dark gown trimmed with a white ruffled collar and cuffs, her hair styled in curls and accented by a modest flower. The figure stands before a muted background, her right arm bent and left hand placed gently on her chest, conveying restrained elegance.
Subject & Meaning
Jacoba Bicker (1640‑1695) was the wife of Pieter de Graeff, a prominent Amsterdam regent. The inclusion of a heraldic shield bearing three horizontal stripes in the lower left foreground signals her family’s status and alliances. Her pearl necklace, ring, and refined attire reinforce the portrait’s function as a visual affirmation of wealth, lineage, and the social role of a married woman in the Dutch elite.
Context
Created during the height of the Dutch Golden Age, the portrait reflects the era’s emphasis on civic pride and the visual representation of merchant‑aristocratic families. Netscher, trained in the studio of Gerard ter Borch, adopted a refined, courtly aesthetic that appealed to affluent patrons seeking to affirm their social standing through portraiture, a common practice in 17th‑century Amsterdam.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Caspar Netscher was a Dutch painter. He was a master in depicting oriental rugs, silk and brocade and introduced an international style to the Northern Netherlands.
The Card Party
A Woman Feeding a Parrot, with a Page
Portrait of a Lady with a Dog on a Table
Family scene
Nursing mother with three girls
Portrait of Willem III (1650-1702), Prince of Orange and since 1689, King of England
Portrait of Cornelis Backer (1633-81), councillor, alderman, and colonel of the Amsterdam militia
A daughter and a son (Constantijn?) of the artist
Portrait of a young woman
Portrait of Volkera van Beresteyn (1624–1653), wife of Salomon van Schoonhoven (1617–1653)
Portrait of a Wife
Helena Fourment
Portrait of Aletta Pancras (1649-1707). Wife of François de Vicq
Bildnis einer Dame
Portrait of a Woman
Portrait of a Lady
Maria van der Burght, eerste echtgenote van François Leidecker
Portrait of a woman, thought to be Lucretia Boudaen