Peter Ilsted and Vilhelm Hammershøi met each other at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in the late 1870s and became close friends. Under the influence of Hammershøi, the quiet interior focusing on a person or woman with the back turned often became a central motif for Ilsted. In 1891, Hammershøi married Ilsted's sister Ida and the close ties between the two artists grew even closer. Ilsted was also one of the close friends who acted as pallbearers at Hammershøi's funeral in 1916.

Pensive and with graveness Hammershøi looks diagonally down to the right with slightly heavy, semi-closed eyes. He is immaculately dressed, has a well-groomed beard, but also long, unruly hair that sticks to all sides. It is a contemplative artist who is portrayed here. Slightly confined and introverted. Several known photographs from the time, portrays Hammershøi in a similar way. A self-conscious artist at the peak of his career. In 1900, he has his first solo exhibition at Kunstforeningen (The Art Society) in Copenhagen.