Vegetable Seller c. 1650s

Nicolaes Maes's "Vegetable Seller" (c. 1650s) portrays a young woman selling vegetables to a customer. The scene is set in a Dutch town square, with a church spire in the background. The painting showcases Maes's skill in capturing the details of everyday life, with a focus on naturalism and realism. The artist also uses the composition and light to highlight the quiet interaction between the two figures. The painting is characteristic of Dutch genre painting, which often depicted scenes of daily life and emphasized the importance of ordinary people.