Artwork
A Woman Smoking
A Woman Smoking is an ink print by the Baroque artist Cornelis Pietersz Bega. It dates from 1648 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art. Created in 1648, this etching on laid paper presents a solitary woman seated at a table, absorbed in the act of smoking a pipe.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1648, this etching on laid paper presents a solitary woman seated at a table, absorbed in the act of smoking a pipe. She wears a loose robe, her short hair framing a downcast gaze, while a bottle and an open book occupy the tabletop. The composition captures a quiet, introspective moment within an interior space.
Subject & Meaning
The work focuses on an everyday domestic scene, emphasizing the private ritual of smoking and reading. The woman's downward stare and relaxed posture suggest contemplation, perhaps a pause from daily duties. By portraying a mundane activity, the image reflects the 17th‑century Dutch interest in genre subjects that reveal character through ordinary moments.
Technique & Style
Executed with fine etching lines on laid paper, the image achieves depth through varied hatching and cross‑hatching, producing subtle tonal gradations. A restrained palette of brown and black inks enhances the somber mood, while the crisp line work conveys texture in the robe, the pipe, and the tabletop objects, echoing the precision typical of Dutch printmaking.
History & Provenance
The etching is attributed to Cornelis Pietersz Bega, a Haarlem‑born painter and engraver who studied under Adriaen van Ostade. Bega, the son of a sculptor‑goldsmith, was known for genre scenes that depicted intimate interiors. This piece exemplifies his print work from the late 1640s, a period when he produced several etchings of similar domestic subjects.
Artist & collection
Artist
Cornelis Pietersz Bega, or Cornelis Pietersz Begijn (1631/32 – 27 August 1664) was a Dutch Golden Age painter and engraver.
