Artwork
Interior with a Woman Embroidering and Rocking a Child in a Cradle
Interior with a Woman Embroidering and Rocking a Child in a Cradle is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Johannes Siberechts. It dates from 1671 and is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The work is attributed to Johannes Siberechts and was painted in 1671, reflecting the genre of interior scenes popular in Dutch and Flemish art.
The painting shows a domestic interior where a woman is engaged in needlework while gently rocking an infant in a cradle. This scene captures everyday family life, emphasizing maternal care and the quiet intimacy of home. The presence of the cradle and embroidery underscores themes of nurturing and domestic virtue in 17th‑century bourgeois interiors.
The work is attributed to Johannes Siberechts and was painted in 1671, reflecting the genre of interior scenes popular in Dutch and Flemish art. It belongs to the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst, where it remains on display.
Iconographically, the cradle symbolizes the innocence of childhood and the continuity of family lineage, while the act of embroidery highlights the expected roles of women as caretakers and managers of the household. Together, these elements convey a moral narrative about the harmony and stability of domestic life.
Technique & Style
The work is an oil painting executed on canvas, depicting an interior scene with a woman engaged in embroidery while rocking a child in a cradle. The composition emphasizes quiet domestic activity, rendered with careful attention to interior spatial arrangement and figure handling characteristic of 17th-century genre painting.
The painting measures 590.0 in width and is housed in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst.
History & Provenance
Interior with a Woman Embroidering and Rocking a Child in a Cradle is an oil painting on canvas created in 1671 by Johannes Siberechts. It entered the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst, where it remains on display.
The work was commissioned as a genre scene depicting a domestic interior, reflecting the artist’s focus on everyday domestic activities. Its dimensions are 590.0 cm in width, and it is classified as a painting within the interior view genre.
The painting’s provenance is directly tied to its acquisition by the Statens Museum for Kunst, establishing a clear ownership chain from its creation in 1671 to its current location.
Overview
Johannes Siberechts, a Flemish painter active in the late 17th century, completed the oil work Interior with a Woman Embroidering and Rocking a Child in a Cradle in 1671. The canvas, now part of the Statens Museum for Kunst collection, exemplifies the domestic genre scenes popular during the Dutch Golden Age.
Context
Domestic interiors were a favored subject for Flemish and Dutch artists of the period, reflecting a growing interest in middle‑class life and moral virtues. Siberechts, known primarily for landscapes, applied his skill in rendering light and atmosphere to a genre scene, aligning his work with contemporary trends in household representation.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Jan Siberechts (1627–1703) was a Flemish landscape painter who, after a successful career in Antwerp, emigrated in the latter part of his life to England.
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