Cardplayers in a Sunlit Room (1658) is an oil-on-canvas painting by the Dutch painter Pieter de Hooch; it is an example of Dutch Golden Age painting and is now in the Royal Collection, and on display at the King's Gallery in London.
Painted during the middle of his career, this painting follows the general style of De Hooch's works, mainly domestic scenes featuring multiple subjects engaging in mundanities of the time. These paintings in particular are characterised by the still atmosphere broken up by the entry of a soft, delicate light, usually through an open door or window presenting the outside world, conveying a moral message. These characteristics served much in common to his contemporary Johannes Vermeer, who he was said to have influenced artistically, with the pair of them living in Delft and attending the Delft School together.The evolution evident in De Hooch's body of work likely drew inspiration from fellow artists in Delft, particularly Carel Fabritius, Gerard Houckgeest, and Emanuel de Witte. These local painters, predominantly focused on architectural themes, sought to innovate illusionistic effects through the skillful application of perspective. Fabritius' "A View of Delft" shows initial explorations in this direction, while Vermeer's "A Lady at the Virginals" exemplifies the culmination of this stylistic approach of Golden Age painters.