In the Northern Romantic tradition, when a woman is shown by an open window, the artist intends to suggest romantic longing or spiritual yearning. When Hammershoi's women stand by a window, it is so that he can explore subtle tonal variations between the harsh daylight outside and the soft, grey light of the interior. The light in Hammershoi's paintings has no spiritual or transcendental significance.
Some critics have tried to read the interiors as places of melancholy and claustrophobic confinement - stage sets for some Danish production of Hedda Gabler. It doesn't work. Light suffuses the figures with a soft radiance, integrating them with the space and furniture to create a deep sense of peace and contentment. Each picture represents a moment of clarity and calm, when the mind is still and the soul at peace with itself.