A Serving Girl Knitting
Attributed to André Bouys (French, 1656–1740)
Oil on canvas; 36 1/4 x 28 1/2 in. (92.1 x 72.4 cm)
Mr. and Mrs. Isaac D. Fletcher Collection, Bequest of Isaac D. Fletcher, 1917 (17.120.211)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York
I am constantly searching for images (artworks, photographs, etc.) of knitting for research purposes as well as pleasure. This is one of my favourites especially as it is an 18th century image and the knitting is visible. I like the clothing and the slightly impatient expression of the woman as if she has been interrupted while knitting, perhaps in the midst of counting! She appears to be making a stocking but I can only see three needles. I have never seen this painting in person and can only find a black and white image. The missing needle(s) may be on the table to the woman's left but the shadows make it difficult to distinguish what is on the foreground of the table.
I have also seen Internet links citing this painting as attributed to Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin (1699 – 1779)
4 comments:
Hi, i found your blog by ravelry and realy love what you're knitting and showing. I've tagged your blog to my favorites and will go and read all your postings as i like it a lot. I hope that you get more comments about your postings and will put up a link to your blog on my blog.
Greets.
Valeria :)
Thank you for your kind comments!
When I read this I thought "Vermeer". Then I realized that the reason he came to mind was not because he painted women knitting, but rather because he so beautifully painted the way light played on the fabric they were wearing. Young Woman With a Water Pitcher is an excellent example. Then I found The Lacemaker. I'm revealing my complete ignorance of knitting here, but... is she knitting, or is lacemaking something else entirely?
The Lacemaker (one of my favourite paintings) is making bobbin lace. It is a technique that is totally different from knitting lace. Bobbin lace making can be extraordinarily fast, the bobbins flying from the lacemaker's hands. I love the look of concentration on the face of woman. Is she moving a pattern pin or is she in the midst of turning thread into lace?
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