Festivals and Films

Dutch Girls: Top Models of the Golden Age

From 06 Sep 2011 to 11 Dec 2011

7 Sept-12 Dec. The Rijksmuseum presents an exhibition of nine sumptuous portraits of women from Holland's Golden Age, painted by artists such as Frans Hals, Isaak Luttichuys, Caesar van Everdingen and Barholomeus van der Helst.

Mainly the wives of wealthy merchants, the protagonists of the paintings lived in 17th-century Holland when a portrait was considered a symbol of status and power.

The portraitists endeavoured to flatter their models who were generally portrayed in the most fashionable clothing and luxurious jewellery of the day. The organisers of the exhibition said that the paintings demonstrate the "timelessness of vanity."