Gerard ter Borch II - Gallant Conversation [c.1654]

Gerard ter Borch II - Gallant Conversation [c.1654], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

A young woman in a silver-grey dress is standing with her back to us, her head tilted slightly to one side as though cautiously looking at the man sitting on the chair. The man is trying to catch her eye; the older woman appears to want to keep out of the way: she is sipping her wine while staring into her glass. This is a strange situation; what exactly is going on?

For a long time this painting was called 'Paternal Admonition'. The man was seen as a father lecturing his daughter. However, if you look closely, this cannot be right. The man is far too young to be the girl's father. And why is the large bed so obvious? In the Gemalde Gallery in Berlin there is a later, slightly smaller version of this painting. When the picture was cleaned it became clear that the man is holding a coin between his fingers. This explains a lot: the girl is apparently a prostitute and the man is a client requiring her services. 

Even without the coin it would have been clear to viewers in Gerard ter Borch’s day that this picture is a brothel scene. Other things in the painting also refer to this. On the right, behind the man's chair wanders a somewhat grubby dog. The dog and the candle on the table on the left were often used as symbols of sensuality, particularly if a bed was also depicted. This combination of a bed, dog and candle can also be found in other 'loose women' paintings, such as 'Woman at Her Toilet' by Jan Steen.

[Oil on canvas, 71 x 73 cm]