Letter to a Sleeping Soldier

Studio of Gerard ter Borch II (1617–1681)

Ca 1656–1660. Oil on canvas

Gerard ter Borch II is one the best known genre painters of 17th-century Dutch art. His interior scenes with elegantly clad figures were extremely popular among the wealthy Dutch bourgeoisie in the middle of the 17th century. Even today, these paintings hold a central position in art historical treatments of 17th-century Dutch art.

The great popularity of ter Borch’s pictures led to copying; copies were made at the artist’s studio but also by other artists as commissions from art dealers.

The painting “Letter to a Sleeping Soldier” was probably made by ter Borch’s most renowned student, Caspar Netscher (ca 1635–1684), who later developed into a highly appreciated upper class portrait painter. Netscher was completing his studies at ter Borch’s studio and was preparing to become an independent artist; he had acquired the master’s style and was capable of producing “ter Borchs” on his own. The painting is not an exact copy of ter Borch’s “Sleeping Soldier” (1655), but rather a variation on the theme. Making studio copies was part of an artist’s training at the time, but the rights to sell these works belonged to the master. There are several repetitions of the painting “Letter to a Sleeping Soldier”, one of them with the signature “C. Netscher”, which shows the master status of the artist.