Villagers Merrymaking at an Inn
Artist: Adriaen van Ostade (Dutch, 1610 - 1685)
Date: 1652
Dimensions:
H: 16 3/4 in. (42.5 cm); W: 21 7/8 in. (55.5 cm)
Medium: Oil on wood panel
Classification: Paintings
Credit Line: Purchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey
Object number: 1969.339
Label Text:Images of the supposedly raucous, unrestrained lives of peasants (largely based on stereotypes rather than reality) were in high demand in middle-class Dutch homes. Adriaen van Ostade was one of the most popular and accomplished Dutch artists who specialized in such scenes of rustic life.
Early in his career Van Ostade often presented his peasants as objects of ridicule whose uncontrolled drinking, fighting, and lechery provided an example of how not to live. However, his later works, like this example, were more matter-of-fact and less judgmental. The villagers in this cavernous inn drink and smoke, dance and flirt, but Van Ostade gives them a sense of dignity and a carefree joy for life.
Early in his career Van Ostade often presented his peasants as objects of ridicule whose uncontrolled drinking, fighting, and lechery provided an example of how not to live. However, his later works, like this example, were more matter-of-fact and less judgmental. The villagers in this cavernous inn drink and smoke, dance and flirt, but Van Ostade gives them a sense of dignity and a carefree joy for life.
On view
In Collection(s)