Netscher intends a deliberate contrast between the industry of the girl who is being taught to read & the idleness of the boy, who prefers to play with the dog & knucklebone. On the wall behind is a small copy of Rubens's ' The Brazen Serpent', the ori ...

Ferdinand Bol completed this commissioned painting after leaving Rembrandt’s studio when he was a young, up-&-coming painter. We do not know the identity of the sitter, but we know from her jewellery & clothing she must have been of a high social status. A very large teardrop pearl hangs from a gold brooch set with diamonds, & it looks like there are more diamonds in her elaborate earrings & necklace. The sitter is dressed modestly but with expensive detail like the gold thread of the bodice. This was how the wealthy elite dressed at the time in 1640s. We think the sitter sought out the artist due to his glamorous reputation & associations to Rembrandt. The pose of the sitter is like the pose Rembrandt used for his famous self portraits also in our collection at the National Gallery. About this painting A Lady with a Fan, 1643 © The National Gallery, London. This painting joined our collection in 1946. ...

The sitter has not been identified. The costume suggests the date of about 1550 & can be compared with ' Portrait of a Lady' by Hemessen in the collection. The attribution is not certain. The painting has sometimes been thought to be by Catharina van Hemessen's father, Jan, although this type of portrait is very similar to her work. It may be by another unidentified Antwerp artist. ...

Create your own bespoke print of Hans Holbein the Younger’s A Lady with a Squirrel & a Starling from our collection. About this painting A Lady with a Squirrel & a Starling, about 1526
- 1528 © The National Gallery, London This painting joined our collection in 1992 With our custom print service, you can order your own fully customised reproduction from the National Gallery Collection & exhibitions. Choose your own size, print material & frames & have your masterpiece delivered straight to your door.
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Create your own bespoke print of Claude-Joseph Vernet’s A Landscape at Sunset from our collection. About this painting A Landscape at Sunset with Fishermen returning with their Catch (' Calme'), 1773 © The National Gallery, London This painting joined our collection in 2004 With our custom print service, you can order your own fully customised reproduction from the National Gallery Collection & exhibitions. Choose your own size, print material & frames & have your masterpiece delivered straight to your door. ...

Wijnants was from Haarlem & throughout his life the subject of almost all his pictures is the characteristic dune scenery near the city. However, in this picture a specific location cannot be identified. Shortly after he painted this picture he moved to ...

The elevated viewpoint & low horizon give the viewer the impression of a vast landscape. The eye is guided along the winding river towards the farm in the middle distance. The dramatic cloud formation emphasises the further deep recession of the space b ...

Two horsemen have stopped to talk in front of some farm buildings. A boat navigates the river at the left. Jan Wouwermans lived & worked in Haarlem, painting landscapes based on the dune scenery near Haarlem. As one can see in this painting, he was influenced by Jan Wijnants & by his brother, the well-known landscape painter Philips Wouwermans, whose works are also represented in the National Gallery's Collection. ...

Wijnants came from Haarlem & this picture shows the dune landscape between that town & the coast. It is unlikely to represent a specific location. The figures & animals are probably by Jan Lingelbach (1622
- 1674), & the picture probably dates from the 1660s when Wijnants & Lingelbach were both living in Amsterdam.
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The sun appears to be setting beyond a river & its last rays are reflected on the figures & cattle in the foreground. The painting was probably executed in the late 1640s or early 1650s. ...