Items17The creator’s order
  1. 1Frans HalsFrans HalsThe Laughing Cavalier, in the Wallace Collection, is a place to begin with Hals. The sitter’s sideways turn, raised elbow, and glittering sleeve make the portrait feel like a moment caught in motion. The costume gives you plenty to inspect, but Hals keeps pulling your gaze back to the man’s…0
  2. 2Judith LeysterJudith LeysterIn Self-Portrait at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, Leyster turns away from her easel while she paints a violinist. The musician introduces the merry company scenes she was known for. The poised brush makes the portrait feel like an interruption.0
  3. 3Jan SteenJan SteenStart with The Merry Family at the Rijksmuseum. The adults make music and the children join in, following the example of the older people around the table. Find the note above the fireplace to see how Steen lets a loud household scene carry a joke about what adults teach.0
  4. 4Pieter de HoochPieter de HoochThe Courtyard of a House in Delft at the National Gallery in London shows what de Hooch can do with a doorway. Follow the paving and openings away from the woman and child. Each threshold offers a little more of the house without letting you see all of it.0
  5. 5Rachel RuyschRachel RuyschBorn Jun 3, 1664Find Vase with Flowers at the Mauritshuis. Start in the middle, where a cut poppy has left a space among the stems. The gap makes the bouquet look deeper. Past the brightest petals, you can see how Ruysch arranged flowers with different degrees of freshness together.0
  6. 6Jacob van RuisdaelJacob van RuisdaelThe Windmill at Wijk bij Duurstede in the Rijksmuseum leaves a lot of room for the sky. Follow the approaching cloud toward the mill and see how the mill’s height gathers the separate details into one landscape. Start here if you like weather that changes the scale of a view.0
  7. 7Aelbert CuypAelbert CuypIn River Landscape with Riders at the Rijksmuseum, follow the glow on the riders to the light edges of the clouds and the reflections in the river. The same low light ties together people and distances. Put it beside Ruisdael’s mill to see how differently two painters could use the sky.0
  8. 8Pieter Jansz. SaenredamPieter Jansz. SaenredamStart with Interior of the Sint-Odulphuskerk in Assendelft at the Rijksmuseum. Follow the lines of the architecture into the bright church. Once you have the bearings of the room, notice how small the people at the sermon look in the space Saenredam has measured out.0
  9. 9Gerard ter BorchGerard ter BorchIn Gallant Conversation at the Rijksmuseum, look at the woman’s satin dress and then at the visitor with a hat still in his hand. Ter Borch lets you see enough to guess about the meeting without confirming what it is about. That makes the clear folds and reflections of the satin all the more…0
  10. 10Carel FabritiusCarel FabritiusSee The Goldfinch at the Mauritshuis. Start with the little chain near the bird’s foot, then let your eye move out into the light and shadow on the white wall. Fabritius gives those few elements the sense of a living bird you have briefly come upon.0