A Young Lady Playing a Clavichord

Young Lady Playing a Clavichord is a 1660s genre painting by Gerrit Dou. It is an example of Dutch Golden Age painting and is today in a private collection.[1]

Young Lady Playing a Clavichord
ArtistGerrit Dou 
Year1660s
Mediumoil paint, wood
Dimensions39 cm (15 in) × 32 cm (13 in)
IdentifiersRKDimages ID: 249487

Early history and creation

This painting by Dou was documented by Hofstede de Groot in 1908, who wrote; "133. A YOUNG LADY PLAYING ON THE VIRGINALS. Sm. 45 and Suppl. 14 ; M. 301a, and see M. 301 and M. 302.[2] A young lady, seen at three-quarter length in profile to the left, sits playing on the virginals, placed on a table covered with a Persian carpet. She turns her head to the spectator. She wears a green velvet jacket trimmed with white fur and an apron. A curtain is drawn back above her to the right. In the left background, through an open door, is seen an adjoining room in which two gentlemen and a lady sit at table by an open window ; a man-servant gives one of the gentlemen a glass of wine. Panel, 15 inches by 12 inches. Described by Descamps in the Issenheim collection, 1754. Exhibited at the British Gallery, 1821. Saks. (Possibly not all referring to the same picture.) Marechal d'Issenheim, Paris, 1754. Comte du Barry, Paris, November 21, 1774 (5000 francs). Prince de Conti, Paris, April 8, 1777 (5000 francs, Langlier) ; a note by Glomy in a copy of Blanc's Trésor, p. 380, says that this came from a sale at Langford's, London, and was there regarded as a copy by Schalcken. Paul Benfield, London, June 21 or July 2, 1799 (£210, or £231, according to Sm.). J. Gildemeester Jansz, Amsterdam, June 11, 1800, No. 34 (975 florins, Labouchere). William Wells of Redleaf, London, May 12, 1848. In the collection of the Earl of Northbrook, London. In the possession of the London dealers Thomas Agnew and Sons. Now in the Gould collection, New York."[3]

Description and interpretation
A Woman playing a Clavichord, Dulwich Gallery, Hofstede de Groot #132

The work shows a lady playing a clavichord in an interior with other ladies in the background, as if she is playing the background entertainment for a small party. Like Martin before him, Hofstede de Groot listed this painting immediately after the painting in the Dulwich Picture Gallery, which shows a similar clavichord player alone in smaller room.

Later history and influence

This painting can be seen hanging bottom left in The Art Gallery of Jan Gildemeester Jansz which was painted in the 1790s. In 2012 this painting was sold at Christie's for 3.3 million dollars.[4]

In 2016 this painting was on show at the Dulwich Gallery, effectively reuniting these paintings that had once before been shown together.[5] Apparently in 1665 the collector Johan de Bye and flower painter Johannes Hannot showed 32 Dou paintings together in Leiden.[6][7] This painting was in the Hannot collection and the Dulwich painting belonged to De Bye.

References
  1. "Young woman playing a clavichord, ca. 1665". RKD.
  2. Comparative table of catalog entries between Smith's and Martin's first Catalogue raisonné of Dou and Hofstede de Groot's list of Dou paintings in 1908
  3. entry 133 for A Young Lady Playing on the Virginals in Hofstede de Groot, 1908 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  4. Sale record on Christie's website
  5. Pair of paintings from Dutch golden age reunited after 351 years, 3 July 2016 article in the Guardian
  6. Johan de Bye in the RKD
  7. Johannes Hannot in the RKD
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