Peasants Outside a Farm Slaughtering a Pig
c. 1652
Medium
etching, with touches of drypoint, on laid paper
Dimensions
sheet (trimmed within plate mark): 11.5 × 11.6 cm (4 1/2 × 4 9/16 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Rosenwald Collection
Accession Number
1943.3.8314
Art Historical Context
Adriaen van Ostade *Peasants Outside a Slaughtering a Pig*c. 1652) captures a gritty slice of 17th-century Dutch rural life during the Golden Age. As a master of genre scenes, van Ostade (1610–1685) specialized in depicting peasants with earthy realism, often infused with humor or pathos. Here, a group of villagers busily slaughters a pig outside a modest farm—a common winter ritual to preserve meat through salting or smoking, essential for survival in the harsh northern European climate. This intimate etching reflects the era's fascination with everyday activities, elevating humble laborers f...
About the Artist
Adriaen van Ostade · 1610–1685
Adriaen Jansz. van Ostade (1610-1685) was a Dutch Baroque painter and printmaker who specialized in genre scenes of peasant life. Born and raised in Haarlem, he became one of the most prolific and celebrated artists of the Dutch Golden Age, producing over 800 paintings, 50 etchings, and numerous drawings. Van Ostade's significance in art history lies in his masterful depiction of peasant life, a ...