Portrait of a Woman near a Fountain, a Rose in Her Hand

1682

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art

Dominant colour

Portrait of a Woman near a Fountain, a Rose in Her Hand is a 1682 by Johan Thopas, a Baroque work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.

Who painted this?: Johan Thopas
When & what style?: 1682 · Baroque
Where can I see it?: Cleveland Museum of Art

About this work

A woman in a lace collar holds a single rose beside a stone fountain. The fountain has carved faces and water spills from their mouths. Behind her, trees and a balustrade frame the scene. Thopas drew this with a metal stylus called leadpoint, which leaves soft gray lines. He then added ink for darker shadows. The mix lets him show every fold in her dress and every petal on the rose without heavy paint. Most Dutch portraits at the time were painted—this one was done fast and cheap, but still feels grand. Look up other drawings from the Netherlands to see how artists balanced detail and speed.

The story of this work

Overview

The Dutch artist Johann Thopas made meticulous drawn portraits of merchants and intellectuals in the Dutch city of Assendelft. His drawn portraits—made faster and for less expense than painted portraits—appealed to middle-class patrons, as did his unique style combining naturalistic likenesses with elaborate background settings. Using a combination of leadpoint and ink, Thopas achieved remarkable tonal subtlety in this image of a well-dressed woman holding a flower in front of an ornate neoclassical garden.