Interior of a Church

c. 1680

Medium

oil on canvas

Dimensions

62 × 54 cm

Status

In Museum Collection

Collect24 Art ID

C24-109069

Although this spacious church interior is largely imaginary, Emanuel de Witte’s precise description of architectural forms convinces us that he depicted an actual place. To create a sense of familiarity, he included some specific architectural features from the Oude Kerk (Old Church) in Amsterdam. In the late 1500s, militant Protestant sects occupied Catholic churches in the Netherlands and stripped them of rich decorations and “idolatrous” images. The resulting spare, whitewashed interiors became a favorite subject of Dutch artists, who were intrigued by the interplay of light and shadow ove…