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A little Verspronck....

A quickie to break the series of long posts....it is a late night,  I am reading on Rembrandt and Johannes Verspronck. Here is a detail from Verspronck's 'Regentesses of the Haarlem Orphanage', 1642. Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem, The Netherlands.

She looks so calm, almost regal, yet so lifelike. Her collar is the brightest white yet her stare is what grabs you. Perhaps it is the only colour in the black and white composition that makes you focus on rosy cheeks' liveliness. She is young, but not so young as to be naive and has a steadfast maternal glance. Her collar is perfect and fine, neatly painted but finished with soft edges. Her gown sober and neat. She doesn't smile yet looks friendly. The brush strokes seem to echo this in their neat but soft approach.
Johannes Verspronck, detail of
"Regentesses of the Haarlem Orphanage"
1642
Frans Hals Museum
Haarlem, The Netherlands

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