The Interior of the Oude Kerk, Amsterdam, during a Sermon
by WITTE, Emanuel de, Oil on canvas, 79 x 63 cm
In his church interiors painted for patrons who built or maintained the buildings, it is hard to find any reflection of the turbulent life of an artist who was an inveterate gambler with a contentious tendency. De Witte was obliged to use his paintings to settle his debts; left penniless, he took his own life in despair. His canvases are a complete contrast: full of majestic calm, a restrained yet resonant harmony, and a neat rhythm despite a complex linear structure.