VELSEN, Jacob van
(b. ca. 1597, Delft, d. 1656, Amsterdam)

The Fortune Teller

1631
Oil on copper, 26 x 23 cm
Musée du Louvre, Paris

Despite the naive anatomy and the puppet-like shadow, the strong modelling and bright daylight in this picture bring to mind effects in the works of several Utrecht painters, such as Hendrick Terbrugghen, Jan van Bijlert, Johannes Moreelse, and Jacob Duck. The pale green wall and subtle shades of drapery recall Terbrugghen and other genre painters of the period.