Heer die een dame het hof maakt c. 1654

Gesina ter Borch created this artwork, "Heer die een dame het hof maakt", with pen and watercolour. The composition immediately draws our eye to the lower right, where a gentleman courts a seated lady. Ter Borch masterfully uses scale to emphasize the figures, contrasting them against the backdrop of handwritten text filling the page. This juxtaposition creates a dynamic tension, as if the figures are emerging from the very act of writing. The handwritten text surrounding the figures could be viewed as an additional layer of meaning. Semiotically, the script becomes a field of signs, hinting at the broader cultural codes of courtship and communication in Ter Borch's era. It destabilizes fixed categories, inviting the viewer to interpret the scene not just as a simple interaction but as a complex interplay of signs. The blank space surrounding the figures further emphasizes their presence, suggesting a stage or platform upon which this social drama unfolds. This use of space invites ongoing interpretation and re-interpretation, where the aesthetic elements function as part of a larger cultural discourse.