Portrait of Aletta Pancras (1649-1707). Wife of François de Vicq

My name is Isabella, and I'll be your guide today! We're going to look at a really cool painting. It's a portrait, which means it's a picture of a person. This portrait is super old – it's from way back in the 1600s! Can anyone guess how old that is? (Pause for answers). That's right, it's very, very old! nn --- nn This painting is of a woman named Aletta. She lived a long time ago. Look closely at her. What do you notice about her clothes? (Pause for answers). Yes, she's wearing a fancy dark dress! And see those puffy sleeves? They're very stylish for that time. And look at her necklace! It's made of pearls. Pearls are very pretty and shiny. nn --- nn The artist who painted Aletta was very clever. He didn't paint a lot of things in the background. See how the background is just a dark color? This makes Aletta stand out even more. It's like he wanted us to focus all our attention on her. What do you think Aletta is thinking about? (Pause for answers). It's fun to imagine, isn't it? nn --- nn The artist used lots of dark colors, like browns and blues. But he also used some lighter colors to show the light on Aletta's face and clothes. Can you see how the light makes her face look soft and gentle? The artist was really good at showing how light and shadow work together. It's like magic! nn --- nn This painting is a tiny bit smaller than a piece of poster board. But even though it's small, it tells us a lot about Aletta and the time she lived in. It shows us what people wore, and maybe even something about how they felt. It's like a little window into the past! What do you think is the most interesting thing about this painting? (Pause for answers). I'm so glad you all came to see it with me today!