This early 20th-century oil painting by Danish artist Caroline van Deurs (1860-1932) depicts a woman writing a letter by a window with a city view beyond. Van Deurs (1860-1932) was an accomplished painter of genre scenes, landscapes and interiors. She was trained by the grandfather of Danish landscape painting, Vilhelm Kyhn (1819-1903), and spent two years in Paris.

Above all else, Van Deurs was a storyteller, describing with great skill and elegance the memorable experiences that occur between close friends and family. Her scenes are rarely static, they’re alive with movement and delivered in soft focus with gentle chiaroscuro. Lips are poised to speak, hands are occupied, and embroidered voiles are fluttering as if caught by a shifting breeze.

Born into a large family with five siblings, familial interactions were probably foremost on her mind as she developed her artistic career. In a piece from 1914 titled ‘While Mother and Father are Out’, five children play freely within a splendid sunlit room. A boisterous young lad rests his shoes on the furniture while numerous wooden toys are strewn across the floor. The excitement is palpable and the volume near audible.

Aside from her training with Vilhelm Kyhn, information is limited as to her further education. She’s recorded as spending two years in Paris and it’s plausible that she attended Académie de La Palette - a private art school which aimed at promoting the 'conciliation entre la liberté et le respect de la tradition’ ('reconciliation between freedom and respect for tradition'). This popular atelier stood for individuality rather than conformity, yet equally held the past masters in high regard.

Here, in this enchanting piece from 1918, titled ‘Else’s Brev’ (Else's letter), a young woman is seated at a writing desk before a window, balcony, and city view. Pen in hand, she’s midway through a letter - perhaps replying to an enduring friend or pining for a distant lover. Her cheeks are flushed and her pale blue dress is partially lit. Van Deurs has captured the scene with her typical mastery - note the clever rendering of the plants, which seem to frame Else as she writes. And the quiet, yet pensive atmosphere amid the radiant pastel tints. It was shown at the ‘Kunstnerforeningen’ (Danish Artists' Association) in 1921.

Caroline van Deurs exhibited regularly at the Charlottenborg Spring Exhibition, the Women’s Exhibition in Copenhagen, and at the Paris Salon.

Monogrammed in the lower left and held in a later frame.

Learn more about Caroline Van Deurs in our directory.

Medium: Oil on canvas
Overall size: 26½” x 22½” / 67cm x 57cm
Year of creation: 1918
Provenance: Private collection, Denmark.
Exhibited: Copenhagen, ‘Kunstnerforeningen’, 1921, no. 279.
Condition: Assessed and approved by our conservator. Cleaned. Revarnished. Canvas relined.
Our reference: SP0002