  About the Artwork
  
  
  Scenes in which protagonists read, write, send, or receive letters were popular subjects for painting in the seventeenth-century Dutch Republic, reflecting a larger cultural interest in literacy and writing. Amsterdam stood as the major European center for printing and book publishing, while the Dutch educational system placed a significant emphasis on reading and writing. Penmanship played an important role in the elementary school curriculum and later served as a criterion in many hiring processes. For both men and women, the ability to write legible and persuasive letters was highly valued. Gerard ter Borch skillfully painted an exploration of the theme in Young Man Reading. Clad in fashions of the 1680s, the figure has laid his gloves and walking-stick nearby to concentrate on reading. The curtained bed at the right background may imply that he holds a love letter.
  
  
  Title
  Young Man Reading
  
  
  Artwork Date
  ca. 1680
  
  Artist
  Gerard ter Borch
  
  
  
  Life Dates
  1617-1681
  
  
  
  
  Nationality
  
  
  
  Please note:
  Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events.
  Some definitions include:
  Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation.
  
  
  
  Dutch
  
  
  
  Culture
  
  
  
  Please note:
  Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group.
  
  
  
  
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  Medium
  Oil on oak panel
  
  
  Dimensions
  Unframed: 15 7/8 × 13 1/2 inches (40.3 × 34.3 cm)
  Framed: 22 5/8 × 20 × 2 3/8 inches (57.5 × 50.8 × 6 cm)
  
  
  Classification
  Paintings
  
  
  Department
  European Painting
  
  
  Credit
  City of Detroit Purchase
  
  
  
  Accession Number
  
  
  
  This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection.
  Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings.
  For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups.
  
  
  
  29.256
  
  
  Copyright
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