The Bride

Matthijs Maris (1839 - 1917), 1868-1869

oil on canvas, 102 cm x 65 cm
The Mesdag Collection, The Hague

Matthijs Maris was a bit of an outsider. He made mystical figure scenes and dream-like landscapes. This differs radically from the realistic art of his brothers Jacob and Willem, and their contemporaries. He is nevertheless considered a member of the Hague School.

This young bride is rendered so delicately and transparently that she seems ethereal. She holds a book and a flower. The contours of a stained-glass window visible in the background suggest the scene is set in a church.

Maris applied transparant layers of paint. The colours have darkened over time, and the picture now looks considerably different from when it was painted.