Gallant Conversation (The Paternal Admonition)

Gerard ter Borch

c. 1654 · Oil on canvas · Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam

Size2:3 ratio

Frame

$59Unframed print · made to order

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Gallant Conversation (The Paternal Admonition)

Bouquet of Flowers in a Stone Niche

Bouquet of Flowers on a Ledge

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About this work

Artist: Gerard ter Borch (1617–1681)
Year: c. 1654
Medium: Oil on canvas
Original size: 71 × 73 cm
Collection: Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
Movement: Dutch Golden Age

A young woman in a shimmering silver satin gown stands with her back to the viewer while a seated officer, hat on his knee, addresses her with a raised hand; beside him an older woman sips from a glass of wine and takes no notice. A candle, a mirror and combs sit on the table, a dog waits behind the chair, and a bed fills the back of the room. An eighteenth-century French engraving titled the scene The Paternal Admonition, and Goethe wrote it into Elective Affinities as a father scolding his daughter, but the man is far too young to be her father, and the room with its dressing table reads as a suitor's visit or a brothel. Ter Borch painted it around 1654; a smaller version is in Berlin. The satin, rendered fold by fold, has been admired since Reynolds saw it in The Hague in 1781. It is in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.

This print reproduces the whole work, uncropped, from a high-resolution scan of the original. The original is in the public domain.

Details & materials

• Restored in-house from the original painting — cleaned and colour-trued at museum resolution • Heavyweight matte fine-art paper, giclée printed at 300 DPI • Sizes: 12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in; 12×18 and 16×24 and 24×36 also available framed in black or natural wood • Made to order; colours may vary slightly from screen

Shipping & returns

Produced in 2–4 business days, then shipped from the facility nearest you. Delivery is typically 3–6 business days (US/UK/EU) and 5–12 worldwide. Because each print is made to order we don't take change-of-mind returns, but if it arrives damaged or flawed we'll reprint or refund it — no return needed. Full policy →

Is this the whole painting, or a crop?

The whole work, uncropped. The image fills the print at the painting's own proportions; nothing is trimmed to fit a frame.

Is Gallant Conversation (The Paternal Admonition) in the public domain?

Yes. Gerard ter Borch (1617–1681) died more than 70 years ago and the work was published before 1929, so the painting itself is public domain. This print is a reproduction made from a high-resolution scan of the original, which is held by Rijksmuseum.

What is it printed on?

Heavyweight matte fine-art paper with pigment inks, made to order in 12×18, 16×24 and 24×36 inches; the two larger sizes are also offered framed. Colours are matched to the scan, not brightened.

When was Gallant Conversation (The Paternal Admonition) painted, and in what medium?

Gallant Conversation (The Paternal Admonition) dates from c. 1654 and was made in oil on canvas; the original measures 71 × 73 cm.

What size works above a sofa or bed?

For a standard three-seat sofa or a queen bed, 24×36 inches reads as a single statement piece; 16×24 suits a narrower wall or a pairing. The print's proportions follow the original, so a landscape-format painting is wider than it is tall.

About this design

Gallant Conversation (The Paternal Admonition) (Gerard ter Borch) — Gallant Conversation (The Paternal Admonition) · Gerard ter Borch · c. 1654. This is a fine-art reproduction of a public-domain masterwork, shown whole and uncropped on a gallery ground, printed to order on heavyweight matte fine-art paper. Three sizes (12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in); the 16×24 and 24×36 are also offered framed. Part of the Madten Fine Art Collection. — — — Printed to order and shipped by our production partner, Gelato.

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Arrives perfect or we reprint it — free. Every piece is made to order; if it shows up damaged or flawed we remake it, no return needed.

Free worldwide shipping. Made & shipped from the facility nearest you — most orders arrive in ~4–8 business days.

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