Who painted Portrait of a Woman?

Portrait of a Woman was painted by Rembrandt van Rijn in 1640-01-01.

Where can I see Portrait of a Woman?

Portrait of a Woman is held by Metropolitan Museum of Art.

What movement is Portrait of a Woman?

Portrait of a Woman is associated with Dutch Golden Age.

Can I buy a print of Portrait of a Woman?

Museum-quality prints of Portrait of a Woman are available made-to-order from Artifact World Gallery.

Artwork

Portrait of a Woman

Rembrandt van Rijn , 1640

Portrait of a Woman is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Rembrandt van Rijn. It dates from 1640 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This oil painting depicts an unidentified woman, presented in a formal pose against a somber backdrop.

About this work

Subject & Meaning

The composition includes several attributes that frame her identity and status: a chair, a hand fan, and a pearl, each listed among the depicted elements.

The painting depicts a single female sitter, identified in the catalogue record as the main subject. She is shown as a formal portrait subject, consistent with Rembrandt's 1640 portrait practice. The composition includes several attributes that frame her identity and status: a chair, a hand fan, and a pearl, each listed among the depicted elements.

The chair situates her as a seated sitter of consequence, while the fan functions as a conventional accessory in seventeenth-century portraiture, signaling refinement and genteel comportment. The pearl, rendered in oil on canvas, carries long-standing symbolic weight as an emblem of purity, modesty, and wealth, reinforcing the sitter's elevated social standing. Together these iconographic elements, seated pose, fan, and pearl jewelry, construct a visual language of feminine dignity and material prosperity, presenting the woman as an individual of means rather than as an allegorical figure. The work is classified as a portrait genre painting, with the woman as its sole named subject.

Technique & Style

The painting is an oil work on canvas, measuring about 121 cm in height by 98.1 cm in width and dated to 1640. Its surface displays the characteristic brushwork of Rembrandt’s portrait style, rendering a three‑quarter view of a woman accompanied by a chair, a hand fan and a pearl earring. The composition belongs to the portrait genre and was part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s collection, having been owned by Louisine Havemeyer.

History & Provenance

Portrait of a Woman is dated to 1640, as indicated by the work’s inception year. Executed in oil paint on canvas, the painting’s authorship has been discussed as possibly involving Rembrandt alongside Ferdinand Bol, Jan Victors, and Reynier van Gherwen. The work entered the provenance of collector Louisine Havemeyer, who owned it before it became part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s holdings, where it remains today. These details outline the painting’s dating, creation history, and ownership chain from Havemeyer to the museum.

Context

The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Portrait of a Woman, dated 1640, occupies a complex position within Rembrandt scholarship due to its uncertain attribution. While traditionally associated with Rembrandt himself, the work is frequently described in modern cataloging as being executed in the style of the master. This ambiguity has opened the field to alternative attributions, with scholars and databases proposing that the painting may instead be the work of Rembrandt's prominent pupils and contemporaries, including Ferdinand Bol, Jan Victors, or Reynier van Gherwen.

The piece, an oil-on-canvas portrait depicting a woman holding a fan and wearing a pearl, reflects the broader 1640s Dutch Golden Age context of collaborative studio practices. Its provenance from the collection of Louisine Havemeyer further anchors it in the history of early 20th-century American collecting, yet the ongoing debate regarding its authorship remains central to its critical reception and art-historical classification.

Overview

This oil painting depicts an unidentified woman, presented in a formal pose against a somber backdrop. She holds a closed fan and is adorned with a pearl necklace and a dark green gown featuring a light yellow collar. Her composed gaze directly engages the viewer, conveying a sense of quiet dignity.