A Young Woman standing at a Virginal

The woman at the keyboard holds our gaze. Beside her, an empty chair waits in the light. It is easy to imagine another person entering the room, but the painting does not tell us who that person might be. Johannes Vermeer, a Dutch painter, made this scene around 1670–72. Music-making was a familiar subject in domestic pictures, often linked with courtship. The large painting of Cupid behind the woman strengthens that association. Its design was connected with an emblem of faithful love. The window light gives the room clear, quiet order. Her direct gaze and the waiting chair create a different kind of uncertainty within it. She may have paused in playing, or be expecting someone before she begins. A Young Woman seated at a Virginal, also in the collection, has often been considered a possible companion. The two pictures share size and subject, while the paintings on their walls suggest different approaches to love. Their precise relationship remains a question rather than a settled pairing.