A light-skinned man sitting near an oven is surrounded by papers and vessels, all within a shadowy room in this vertical painting. The scene is dominated by chocolate and clay brown, black, slate blue, and shades of gray. The man sits facing our right in profile near the center of the painting. He wears a tall black cap that shadows his eyes and a rust-brown sleeveless garment like a vest over dark, steel-gray, long sleeves. Cream-white fabric tied around his waist could be an apron, and more white fabric drapes over his knees. Brown hair is visible behind his ear, he has a mustache, and his…
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The Alchemist

Cornelis Bega (Dutch, 1631/1632 - 1664)

1663

Medium
oil on canvas mounted on panel
Classification
Painting
Dimensions
overall: 35 × 28.6 cm (13 3/4 × 11 1/4 in.)
Culture
Dutch
Museum
National Gallery of Art, CNE-B
Credit line
From the Collection of Ethel and Martin Wunsch
Rights
Public domain (NGA Open Access, CC0), as the museum states it.
Who can see it
Tweens profiles and older: its subjects are known and suit older children. How works are placed

View at the National Gallery of Art