The Important Response
by Florent Willems (Belgian, 1823-1905)
oil on panel

A lady in early 17th-century attire is seated at a table pondering a letter she is writing. In the background is a high Japanese screen. The artist has lavished great care in the rendering of the contrasting surfaces of his subject's satin dress and of the rug covering the table. In its intimacy and in its oriental note, this work approximates the painting of Alfred Stevens.

Provenance
Purchased by Goupil et Cie, Paris, February 18 1865; purchased by William T. Walters, Baltimore, February 18 1865 [1]; by inheritance, Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1894; by bequest, Walters Art Museum, 1931.