A Lady Writing a Letter is an oil on canvas painting of about 1665 by the Dutch Golden Age master Johannes Vermeer, now in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. It shows a woman seated at a table, paused from writing with a quill loosely in hand as she looks up toward the viewer, dressed in a lemon yellow jacket trimmed with ermine fur and wearing pearl jewelry. The composition is deliberately spare, confining objects to the tabletop and setting the figure's detail against larger, simpler geometric forms, while a partly visible painting on the wall behind her, believed to be a vanitas scene with a stringed instrument, hints at a moral undertone. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Facts
Year Created LocationNational Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. 1 Commissioned By Sources
1. A Lady Writing a Letter (Wikipedia)
Lead section
It is believed to have been completed by artist during his mature phase, in the mid-to-late 1660s.
Lead section, first sentence
A Lady Writing a Letter (also known as A Lady Writing) is an oil on canvas painting by the 17th century Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer.
History of the painting section
Like many other paintings by Vermeer, the painting was made for his patron Pieter van Ruijven (1624-1674).
Lead section, collection sentence
The work is in the collection of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
Genre reference
A Lady Writing a Letter is an oil on canvas painting of about 1665 by the Dutch Golden Age master Johannes Vermeer, now in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.
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