About the artist
Vilhelm Hammershøi (1864–1916), a Copenhagen-born Danish painter, lived and worked in his hometown his entire life. Son of a merchant, he received artistic training from a young age, eventually studying at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. As a fledgling artist, he was inspired by Whistler. His earlier work was considered contraversial due to his limited colour palette and sketch-like approach. Hammershøi's paintings are often introspective interiors and landscapes, displaying an acute understanding of light and spatial composition. He adeptly used shades of mauve, pale yellow, and gray. Typically, a solitary figure, usually a woman, features in his work, captured in a moment of deep thought or absorption. In discussion he would explain the significance of lines, or the "architectural content" of his compositions as well as the light.
