MuseScope.
Gabriel Metsu

Gabriel Metsu

1629–1667 · Dutch Republic · Baroque

The story

Gabriel Metsu worked in the Dutch Republic in the 1650s and 60s, the same short golden span that produced Vermeer just down the road in Delft, and like Vermeer he painted quiet indoor moments of well-off people. His range was wider, moving from market stalls and kitchens to hushed, tender interiors.

His most famous pairing is two small pictures meant to hang together, one of a young man sealing a letter, the other of a woman reading one while her maid pulls back a curtain to peek at a painting of a ship at sea, a sly hint that the letter has come from a sailor far away.

Metsu had moved from his native Leiden to Amsterdam, where the money was, and married well. He died there in 1667, only in his late thirties, his reputation for fine finish already high enough that collectors later paid Vermeer-level prices for him.

Ask a follow-up about anything you read. Get the app.

Works

20 works
Man Writing a LetterMan Writing a LetterGabriel Metsu, 1665The Sick ChildThe Sick ChildGabriel Metsu, 1660Woman Reading a LetterWoman Reading a LetterGabriel Metsu, 1665The Lace-MakerThe Lace-MakerGabriel Metsu, 1663A Man and a Woman seated by a VirginalA Man and a Woman seated by a VirginalGabriel Metsu, 1665A Woman seated at a Table and a Man tuning a ViolinA Woman seated at a Table and a Man tuning a ViolinGabriel Metsu, 1658A Young Woman Composing a Piece of MusicA Young Woman Composing a Piece of MusicGabriel Metsu, 1664Christ and the Woman Taken in AdulteryChrist and the Woman Taken in AdulteryGabriel Metsu, 1653Dead CockDead CockGabriel MetsuOld Woman Eating PorridgeOld Woman Eating PorridgeGabriel Metsu, 1657The ApothecaryThe ApothecaryGabriel Metsu, 1661The CookThe CookGabriel Metsu, 1665The Hunter and a WomanThe Hunter and a WomanGabriel Metsu, 1659The Hunter’s PresentThe Hunter’s PresentGabriel Metsu, 1659The HuntsmanThe HuntsmanGabriel Metsu, 1661The Interior of a SmithyThe Interior of a SmithyGabriel Metsu, 1657The Vegetable Market in AmsterdamThe Vegetable Market in AmsterdamGabriel Metsu, 1660Two Men with a Sleeping WomanTwo Men with a Sleeping WomanGabriel Metsu, 1657Usurer with a Tearful WomanUsurer with a Tearful WomanGabriel Metsu, 1654Woman Tuning a MandolinWoman Tuning a MandolinGabriel Metsu, 1658