A fine early 20th-century Danish genre scene depicting an elderly woman reading by the gentle light of a window. There’s an understated beauty to this subtle Danish painting and it captures a glimpse into everyday rural life. 

Gustav Vermehren (1863-1931) was born into a creative family and destined to become an artist. His father, Frederik (1823-1910) was an accomplished painter - well admired for his idealised rural scenes that romanticised the working classes. As a child, Gustav would’ve been taught to draw by his father which surely provided the catalyst for his formal education. 

It’s interesting to note that throughout his career he stayed true to his father’s style and when confronted with the new freer approach of the French impressionists, he rejected it despite frequent accusations of being old fashioned. As you can imagine, during the later part of the 19th-century, it became fashionable to adopt looser brushwork and flood your canvases with light. Yet Gustav, along with his brother Sophus (1866-1950), remained steadfast to their father’s ideals. 

The painting is signed/dated in the lower left and housed within a frame that’s possibly the original.

Medium: Oil on canvas
Overall size: 25” x 23” / 64cm x 58cm
Year of creation: 1929
Provenance: Denmark
Condition: Overall very presentable. Frame with some age-related wear.
Artist’s auction highlight: £10,900 achieved for ‘Distracted’ at Christie’s in 1990.