Artwork
Seated Girl in Peasant Costume
Seated Girl in Peasant Costume is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Gerard ter Borch. It dates from 1650 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The painting shows a young woman in simple peasant dress, identified by her braids and a red hairband as an unmarried farmer's daughter.
The painting shows a young woman in simple peasant dress, identified by her braids and a red hairband as an unmarried farmer's daughter. She sits in a dim interior holding a printed sheet of paper in her right hand, her expression thoughtful and melancholic, suggesting she may be reading a love letter. Gerard ter Borch likely used his half-sister Gesina ter Borch as the model, a frequent subject in his genre scenes.
The work entered the Rijksmuseum in 1961 as a bequest from Isaac de Bruyn and Johanna Geertruida van der Leeuw.
Technique & Style
Seated Girl in Peasant Costume is executed in oil paint on a wooden panel, measuring approximately 28 cm in height and 23 cm in width. As a genre painting, it shows a young peasant girl seated in a dim interior, her braids and red hairband marking her as an unmarried farmer’s daughter. She holds a printed sheet of paper in her right hand, her gaze melancholic and thoughtful, suggesting she may be reading a love letter. The work exemplifies Gerard ter Borch’s careful attention to costume detail and quiet, introspective mood.
History & Provenance
The painting is dated to circa 1650 by internal records and catalogue entries.
It descended from the private collection of Isaac de Bruyn and Johanna Geertruida van der Leeuw, who bequeathed it to the Rijksmuseum in 1961. The couple held the work in Switzerland, first in Spiez and later in Muri, before its transfer to Amsterdam.
Overview
Seated Girl in Peasant Costume is an oil painting executed on a wooden panel by the Dutch painter Gerard ter Borch. Created around the middle of the 17th century, the work portrays a young woman dressed in simple, rural attire, seated in a modest interior setting.
Context
Gerard ter Borch, a prominent figure of the Dutch Golden Age, produced this piece circa 1650. At that time ter Borch was renowned for his refined genre scenes and his ability to render texture and fabric with subtle realism, qualities evident in this portrait.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Gerard ter Borch (Dutch:; December 1617 – 8 December 1681), also known as Gerard Terburg (Dutch: ), was a Dutch Golden Age painter mainly of genre subjects.
Young Woman at an Open Half-Door
Young Woman with a Red Necklace
Young Woman at an Open Half-Door
A Boy Lousing a Dog
Portrait of a Young Woman
Portrait of a woman, standing full length in an interior
A Seated Woman with a Letter, a Gentleman Standing by Her
Portrait of Elisabeth Pietersdr Kessels (1640-1717)
Portrait of a Girl Dressed in Blue
A Young Woman Reading
Portrait of a Woman- Peasant Girl with a White Headcloth