Moreover, In the 1890s, the Vitalist movement emerged, seeing the sun and light itself as a life-giving force that permeates the world. Anna Ancher has not previously been associated with Vitalism, perhaps because it is often interpreted as an emphatically masculine movement. In the arts, light can also have spiritual significance, becoming a symbol of something transcendent or the presence of the divine. However, such religious dimensions tend to be quickly dismissed in the case of Anna Ancher. She is traditionally regarded as part of the Modern Breakthrough movement, which celebrated science and had no time for religion.

But perhaps things are not quite so clear-cut. Considering these different perspectives on light together paves the way for seeing how Anna Ancher’s painting combines our worldly, sensory experience of light with studies of its spiritual aspects.