Heer in mantel - Gesina ter Borch

A delicate seventeenth-century watercolour study of a gentleman in a cloak, taken from the personal album of Dutch artist Gesina ter Borch.

This delicate work by Gesina ter Borch features a solitary figure of a gentleman dressed in a dark cloak, captured in a walking pose. The drawing originates from her personal album, a collection that offers a window into the social life and artistic habits of a seventeenth-century Dutch woman. Ter Borch was a skilled amateur artist, and her work often documents the fashion and manners of her contemporaries with precision and restraint.

The figure is rendered with fine ink lines and subtle watercolour washes, typical of the period's interest in costume and character studies. The gentleman wears a wide-brimmed hat adorned with a feather, a long dark cloak, and light-coloured hose, reflecting the attire of the Dutch elite during the mid-seventeenth century. The composition is sparse, placing the figure against a plain background, which allows the viewer to focus on the silhouette and the specific details of his clothing. The presence of handwritten Dutch verse on the page suggests that this image served as an illustration or a companion to the poetry, a common practice in the albums of the time.

Gesina ter Borch was the sister of the painter Gerard ter Borch, and her work shares the same attention to texture and light found in his larger canvases. While she did not pursue a professional career in the same manner as her brother, her surviving drawings demonstrate a high level of technical proficiency. This print captures the quiet observation and refined aesthetic that define her contribution to the Dutch Golden Age. It is a piece that invites close inspection, revealing the care taken in the depiction of the fabric and the posture of the subject.