This charming early 20th-century oil painting by Danish artist Valdemar Magaard (1864-1937) depicts a girl adjusting her bonnet by a small mirror near a window.

Magaard’s beautifully composed works celebrate the gentle moments within rural families and offer a glimpse into an affectionate ideology. Produced during a time of ever-advancing industrialisation, they cling to a bygone vision of humble folk life - reminding patrons that their nation’s identity was built on simple values.

Windows and doorways generally form a component of his compositions - the partially obscured light creating atmospheric effects. He adds interest to drapery via falling shadows and prominence to skin via bright illumination. He trained at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and later at Kröyer’s Art School under Lauritz Tuxen. His works are held in various public collections.

Signed/dated lower right and held within a gilt frame.

Learn more about Valdemar Magaard in our directory.

Medium: Oil on canvas
Overall size: 21” x 23½” / 54cm x 60cm
Year of creation: 1917
Provenance: Private collection, Germany.
Condition: Assessed and approved by our conservator. Cleaned. Frame with light marks and signs of age.
Artist’s auction maximum: £1,400 for ‘A Mother and Child’, Oil on Canvas, Christie’s, London, 1994.
Our reference: BRV1807