Visited the National Gallery on Sunday, where we focused on their limited-time Gerard ter Borch exhibit. There were some amazing paintings on display; ter Borch is especially known for capturing the shimmer of satin. Certainly he mastered light's reflection on surfaces better than anyone in his era.
Kim and I debated how much of ter Borch's paintings could be validly interpreted. Ter Borch didn't title all of his works and left only a few notes, which led to confusion over some of the renderings. The scene of one of his renderings was first thought to depict two parents admonishing their daughter, but then the powers that be decided that ter Borch was actually painting a brothel. These same "experts" then state with certainty that the dog looking at the ground in the picture represents the shame of humanity's immorality. Personally, I'd make sure you know who the people are before worrying about the dog. (But I guess that's just me.)
Leave a comment