Blogtober 10: Women in the Kitchen

 

The Maid in the Kitchen by Anna Ancher

A lot of my day was spent in the kitchen, preparing for tomorrow's dinner. I've done everything I can do ahead and tomorrow will go smoothly. My family will help and will do much of the cleanup. 

I thought I'd share some paintings of women in the kitchen, since throughout history that's often been where women have worked. I am glad that in many homes the work is shared between the people who live there. My husband and I have a traditional relationship as I love to cook and he doesn't really know how, nor have much interest in learning anything beyond the basics. But all of our children and their spouses share household duties, and I love to see it.  

In Anna Ancher's painting above I was struck by the simplicity of the room - a small workspace with light from the window, and a table holding the vegetables the maid is likely preparing for a meal. How streamlined and efficient our modern day kitchens are, with storage space galore for all the gadgets and equipment we think we need. 

Canadian Kitchen by Frederick James 

The first time I saw Canadian Kitchen, I thought it must be French Canadian because of the clothes, particularly the red scarf around the woman's neck. The artist, Frederick James spent a good deal of time in Quebec, and had a home there. 

Ida Reading a Letter by Vilhelm Hammershoi

Fellow Blogtober blogger Barbara mentioned her admiration of Vilhelm Hammershoi, a Danish painter, in my earlier post about domestic interior art. His work is very clean and minimalist, with wonderful lighting. In the above painting, his wife reads a letter while on the table a coffee pot and cup await. Was it good news or bad she reads? 

The Milkmaid by Johannes Vermeer

I was so pleased to see Vermeer's painting when we visited the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam two summers ago. Once again I was reminded of how vibrant and alive original art is, and it makes me long to see more art. 

There is a lot of interpretation of this painting and of others in the "maid" genre, which is interesting to read, if a bit disturbing for its connotations. However, it seems that the maid here is preparing bread pudding! Yum! I have always loved bread pudding although I don't eat it very often these days. 

The Kitchen by Carl Larsson

Another of Carl Larsson's paintings of his family. I don't know if the older girl/woman is his wife or a daughter. She looks very young. I believe she is churning butter. There are so many wonderful details in the painting - the copper pots on the stove, the stacked dishes on a tray on the table by the window, and the little white cat beside the stove. And the curtain blowing inwards from the open window. I'd love to know what the green barrel in the corner holds. Any ideas? 

Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canadians, and a lovely Sunday to my other readers.