An Old Woman Dozing over a Book
Shown from the waist up on the other side of a strawberry-red table, an elderly, pale-skinned woman sits facing us, sleeping with her head propped on her hand in this vertical painting. She is brightly lit from our upper left, which creates deep shadows across her face, and behind and around her. The woman rests her cheek against her closed left fist, to our right. That elbow is propped on a gold and amber-yellow cushion tucked into the corner where the table meets the wall to our right. Her brows are slightly furrowed over deep-set eyes. She has loose jowls, thin lips, and wrinkles line the corners of her eyes and her mouth. Almost lost in shadow, her other hand rests on the large book lying open before her. She wears a black coat draped over a parchment-white garment. Her hair is covered by a ginger-brown and black striped veil that hangs to her shoulders. Three iron-gray keys hang from a rail running across the wall next to her at head height. The wall is sage green and mustard yellow in the light, and the corners and left edge are swallowed in shadow. The artist signed the painting in capital letters on the right, just above the rail, “N. Maes.”
Details
- Palette
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- Medium
- oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- overall: 82.2 x 67 cm (32 3/8 x 26 3/8 in.)
- Department
- CNE-B
- Holding institution
- National Gallery of Art
- Image provider
- national-gallery-of-art
- License
- CC0-1.0
- Credit
- Andrew W. Mellon Collection
Art Genome Taxonomy
9 tags
Subject Matter
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Human Figure Visual · 100%
A single elderly woman is the central and dominant human figure, shown from approximately the waist up.
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Interiors Both · 97%
The woman, table, open book, wall rail, cushion, and hanging keys form an enclosed domestic interior; the catalog description also identifies the setting and furnishings.
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Scenes of Everyday Life Both · 95%
The image shows a commonplace domestic action—a woman dozing over a book—consistent with the catalog title and description.
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Stolen Moments Visual · 90%
The woman’s closed eyes and supported head present an unguarded, temporarily interrupted moment of reading and wakefulness.
Visual Qualities
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Dark Colors Visual · 97%
Black and very dark brown areas occupy much of the garment, background, tabletop, and surrounding interior.
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Earth Tones Visual · 92%
The painting uses a predominantly muted palette of browns, ochers, olive-sage, cream, black, amber, and red.
Medium and Techniques
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Oil Painting Metadata · 100%
The National Gallery of Art identifies the work as a painting in oil on canvas.
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Chiaroscuro Visual · 98%
Directional illumination sharply separates the lit face, hand, and garment from the extensive surrounding shadow.
Time Periods
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17th Century Art Metadata · 100%
The catalog dates the work to approximately 1655.
Source & rights
Nicolaes Maes. An Old Woman Dozing over a Book. Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington.