Smoker on a Stool Conversing with a Cobbler at Work
Medium
etching, with touches of drypoint, on laid paper
Dimensions
plate: 18.8 × 15 cm (7 3/8 × 5 7/8 in.) sheet: 19.3 × 15.4 cm (7 5/8 × 6 1/16 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Rosenwald Collection
Accession Number
1943.3.8305
Art Historical Context
Adriaen van Ostade's *Smoker on a S Conversing with a Cob at Work* (1671) captures a candid moment of everyday life in 17th-century Holland. This etching, enhanced with delicate touches of drypoint on laid paper, measures a modest 18.8 × 15 cm, inviting close inspection of its intricate details. Van Ostade, a master Dutch Golden Age genre scenes, in portraying the humble world of peasants and laborers with warmth and humor, drawing from the realist tradition of Rembrandt and his Haarlem contemporaries. The artwork's historical significance lies in its vivid snapshot of working-class camarader...
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 ...