Jacob Toorenvliet

The actual painting is less bright and less red in tone than the catalogue illustration suggests. The canvas has an old relining (wax). No damages are apparent. The paint is a little abraded in the darker passages, but otherwise, is well-preserved. A few small retouchings can be observed in the draperies on the left, and those of the standing man in and of the woman in the middle, and in the dog. The paint surface is under a reasonably clear and glossy layer of varnish. Inspection under Ultra-Violet light confirms the aforesaid, and reveals additional tiny scattered retouchings throughout, e.g. in the upper left corner, in the background upper centre, and in the face and draperies of the lady on the left. Offered in a decorative carved wood and gilt plaster frame, in good condition. (MW)
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After a long sojourn in Italy and Vienna, Toorenvliet had returned to The Netherlands by 1680, and first lived in Amsterdam, but settled in Leiden soon after. The present work can be dated to these years and can be compared with other works from the 1680s, such as the signed Music making couple with a procuress¹ and An old woman with a hurdy-gurdy player and singing boy², both showing a similar  grouping of a male figure standing in the same pose in front of a seated lady accompanied by a third person.

We are grateful to Dr. Susanne Karau for confirming the attribution to Jacob Toorenvliet following first hand inspection.

1. See S. Karau, Leben und Werk des Leidener Malers Jacob Toorenvliet (1640-1719), Berlin 2002, unpublished dissertation Freie Universität Berlin, cat. no. B106, reproduced.
2. Karau, op. cit., cat. no. B81, reproduced.