1663
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
Dominant colour
Portrait of a Family Playing Music is a 1663 unspecified by Pieter de Hooch, a Baroque work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
A family sits in a sunlit room, playing music together. The father strums a lute while the mother sings, and their children listen or turn pages of sheet music. Light spills through a window, bouncing off marble floors and rich fabrics. This painting shows how Dutch families spent quiet evenings at home. The fancy rug, silk clothes, and Asian vases hint at trade wealth—Dutch ships brought these goods from far away. Music wasn’t just entertainment; it meant harmony in the household. If you like this cozy scene, look up *Dutch Golden Age* next.
The identity of the sitters remains unknown, although the marble floor and mantelpiece, the Transylvanian prayer rug on the table, and the silk clothes all point to the family’s considerable wealth. Furthermore, the richly carved chest at the right supports Chinese vases and Japanese lacquered boxes, a reference to the flourishing Dutch trade with Asia. Music making often took place at home, and its appearance here also signifies the harmoniousness of the family.
During this period, the Dutch Republic was the richest, most urbanized nation.
Read the full account in the museum source.
Pieter Hendricksz. de Hooch (Dutch: ; also spelled Hoogh or Hooghe; bapt. 20 December 1629 – after 1683), was a Dutch Golden Age painter famous for his genre works of quiet domestic scenes with an open doorway. He was a…
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