Artwork
Girl with an Oil Lamp at a Window
Girl with an Oil Lamp at a Window is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Gerrit Dou. It dates from 1660 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
Technique & Style
The work measures 22 cm in height and 17 cm in width, reflecting the artist's characteristic small-scale format for genre scenes.
Gerrit Dou executed Girl with an Oil Lamp at a Window in 1660 using oil paint applied to a panel support. The work measures 22 cm in height and 17 cm in width, reflecting the artist's characteristic small-scale format for genre scenes. As a piece of genre art, the painting demonstrates the precise handling and detailed execution typical of Dou's style, focusing on an intimate domestic subject illuminated by a single light source.
History & Provenance
Gerrit Dou executed the panel painting Girl with an Oil Lamp at a Window in 1660. The work was historically owned by Adriaan Leonard van Heteren Gevers, forming part of the collection known as the Kabinet van Heteren Gevers. Following this period of private ownership, the painting entered the holdings of the Rijksmuseum.
During its time at the museum, the work was located at the Trippenhuis and the Royal Palace of Amsterdam before becoming part of the institution's main collection.
The painting Girl with an Oil Lamp at a Window by Gerrit Dou is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. It is part of the Kabinet van Heteren Gevers, a specific bequest within the museum's holdings. The work was originally owned by Adriaan Leonard van Heteren Gevers before entering the public collection.
While the source notes a location at the Trippenhuis, Royal Palace of Amsterdam, this refers to the broader context of the collection's association rather than a separate current venue, as the piece is cataloged under the Rijksmuseum.
Context
Gerrit Dou painted Girl with an Oil Lamp at a Window in 1660, exemplifying his mastery of Dutch Golden Age genre scenes through meticulous oil-on-panel technique and intimate interior compositions. The work belongs to his mature period focused on quiet domestic moments illuminated by artificial light, reflecting broader trends in 17th-century Dutch painting where private contemplation and moralistic domestic settings were central themes. Its presence in the Rijksmuseum's Trippenhuis collection alongside other Dou works underscores its significance within the museum's holdings of Dutch Baroque art.
Scholarly analysis emphasizes the painting's role in documenting Dou's contribution to genre painting's evolution, particularly his technical innovations in rendering light effects within enclosed spaces, which influenced later artists in the Leiden school. The work's attribution to Dou and dating to 1660 are consistently documented in both museum records and art historical literature, reinforcing its established position in the artist's oeuvre and Dutch art history.
Overview
Girl with an Oil Lamp at a Window is a 1660 oil painting by Gerrit Dou, a Dutch Golden Age artist known for detailed genre scenes.
Subject & Meaning
The painting depicts a young woman leaning out a window at night, holding an oil lamp that casts a soft glow on her face and surroundings, creating an intimate domestic scene.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Gerrit Dou (pronounced; 7 April 1613 – 9 February 1675), also known as Gerard Douw or Dow, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, whose small, highly polished paintings are typical of the Leiden fijnschilders.
