17th

century

Reed pen and bistre on paper

Dutch

A sleeping woman at a window

Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn (1606-69)

Rembrandt executed a small number of genre pieces of sleeping women at windows or in bed. Some of these depict his wife’s saskia (died 1642) and others are from what is probably the same model, a middle aged woman with rounded cheeks. These drawings are often characterised by the distinctive use of heavy wash for the shadows while the lighter areas are indicated by quick flicks of the pen.

Schorr Collection, UK / © The Schorr Collection / Bridgeman Images

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