Nursing mother 1659

Pieter de Hooch's *Nursing Mother* (1659) is a quintessential example of Dutch genre painting, depicting everyday life in the 17th century. The painting depicts a woman nursing a baby while a young girl watches nearby, with a dog by the fireplace. The warm light emanating from the window casts long shadows across the tiled floor, creating a sense of intimacy and domesticity. The use of natural light and the depiction of everyday activities were hallmarks of Dutch Golden Age painting, reflecting a growing interest in the ordinary and the mundane.