Self-Portrait at Age Fifty
Artist: Gerrit Dou (Dutch, 1613 - 1675)
Date: 1663
Medium: Oil on cradled mahogany panel
Collection: The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri, United States
Description
Three-quarter-length portrait of the artist standing at a window under a gothic arcade, holds walking stick in left hand, leans with right arm upon a table which is covered in part by a Turkish carpet, open sketch book on table; his dress consists of a loose morning gown over a yellowish waistcoat; furrred bonnet covers his head; river and buildings visible in right background.
Gerrit Dou (7 April 1613 – 9 February 1675), also known as Gerard Douw or Dow, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, whose small, highly polished paintings are typical of the Leiden fijnschilders. He specialized in genre scenes and is noted for his trompe-l'œil "niche" paintings and candlelit night-scenes with strong chiaroscuro. He was a student of Rembrandt.
