Artwork
Girl at the Piano
Girl at the Piano is an oil painting by the Impressionist artist Jacob Maris. It dates from 1890 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
Girl at the Piano depicts a young girl seated at a piano, her hair styled in a chestnut ponytail.
Girl at the Piano depicts a young girl seated at a piano, her hair styled in a chestnut ponytail. She is shown as a pianist, positioned on a stool with sheet music before her. Classified as a portrait, the work presents the child absorbed in her musical activity, with the piano serving as the central object anchoring the domestic scene.
The painting emphasizes the intimate moment of a girl engaged with music, rendered through the specific iconographic elements of the instrument, the sheet music, and the child's attentive posture.
Technique & Style
Girl at the Piano is an oil‑on‑canvas portrait painted by Jacob Maris in 1890. The work measures 36 × 22 cm and depicts a young girl seated at a piano, her posture and the surrounding interior rendered with careful brushwork that emphasizes the quiet domestic setting. Executed in oil paint on a canvas support, the piece exemplifies the portrait genre through its focused composition and subtle handling of light on the subject’s chestnut hair and the piano keys. The painting entered the Rijksmuseum collection after being owned by Carl Daniel Reich and A.E. Reich‑Hohwü.
History & Provenance
Girl at the Piano is an oil‑on‑canvas portrait painted by Jacob Maris in 1890, as recorded in contemporary documentation. The work measures 36 × 22 cm and depicts a young girl seated at a piano, rendered in the portrait genre. Following its creation, the painting entered the collection of Carl Daniel Reich and subsequently passed to A.E. Reich‑Hohwü, who held ownership before the piece was acquired by the Rijksmuseum, where it remains.
The painting’s provenance thus traces from the Maris studio to private owners and finally to a public institution. The available sources do not contain a specific inventory or accession number, nor do they list any public exhibitions in which the piece has been displayed.
Context
Jacob Maris painted Girl at the Piano in 1890, an oil on canvas portrait measuring 36 × 22 cm that depicts a young girl at a piano. The work belongs to the portrait genre and is part of the Rijksmuseum’s collection, having previously entered the museum via the ownership of Carl Daniel Reich and A.E. Reich‑Hohwü. As a late‑19th‑century Dutch interior scene, it reflects the domestic subject matter characteristic of Maris’s oeuvre and illustrates the transition from 19th‑century genre painting toward more intimate, everyday moments.
The painting’s provenance and placement within the museum underscore its significance in the study of Dutch art history.
Overview
Jacob Maris, a Dutch artist associated with the Hague School, completed Girl at the Piano in 1890. This oil painting captures an intimate domestic scene, depicting a young girl engaged with the instrument. While Maris was primarily known for his landscapes and formal portraits, this work showcases his ability to render genre subjects. The painting is currently part of the collection at the Rijksmuseum.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Jacob Henricus Maris (August 25, 1837 – August 7, 1899) was a Dutch painter, who with his brothers Willem and Matthijs belonged to what has come to be known as the Hague School of painters.
