Dutch Interior

Vermeer’s elusive, oblique arts are found in this canvas ascribed to Hendrick van der Burch, who was also active in mid-seventeenth-century Delft. As with several canvases by Vermeer, this image is distinguished by its absence of overtly mattering subject. An ermine-trimmed satin jacket has been tossed over a chair, and precious slippers rest below; both are seen under an opulent still-life in a richly carved and gilded frame. None of these wealthy props are congruent with their more modest domestic settings.