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Three figures enjoy tobacco in an expressive manner in the foreground while an onlooker leans through the window. Around a table in the background, another group of figures drinks or plays cards. This is an example of scenes inside taverns with smokers, drinkers and players, which Teniers made during the sixteen thirties. He began with figures by his teacher, Adriaen Brouwer (1605/1606-1638), whic
This is a singular example of David Teniers´ indoor scenes. The kitchen or tavern utensils so common in his other works are completed here with a magnificent show of diverse fruit and vegetables. This converts the right part of the composition into a still life. On the left, a character shells mussels, a traditional foodstuff in the Low Countries, while another group works beside the fireplace. Th
A male figure smokes and drinks, directing an expressive glace at the viewer. Behind him, a companion is inside a tavern filled with vats, basins and barrels. The protagonist has been identified as a soldier on leave after a campaign, but this is also a representation of everyday life in Flanders. Illustrations of people enjoying the pleasures of alcohol or tobacco were quite customary in the work
A group of local people dance to the sound of bagpipes and a hurdy-gurdy in honour of a bride, who presides at the table in the background, surrounded by what seem to be older relatives or guests. The distant background, in which a tall-spired church can be made out, is populated by a group of distinguished personages, one of whom could be Archduke Leopold Wilhelm of Austria, governor of the Spani
Peasants or villagers hold a feast in front of a tavern or inn, recognizable by its red flag. They drink, eat and dance to the music of a bagpiper standing on a barrel. On the left, various distinguished personages, who stand out because of their different clothing, look on with a combination of curiosity and indifference. A large church in the background indicates there is a town nearby. On the b
Of the artists who painted war scenes in the 17th century, none was as interested as David Teniers II in capturing images from behind the lines. With his customary tactile rigor, he depicts a plethora of military objects lying in the foreground with no apparent order and a handful of figures hanging cuirasses or helping their colleagues to remove their footgear. At the same time, he draws on one o
This work depicts the feast of Epiphany, as can be seen by the crown on the central figure, whose paintings show an Adoration of the Magi. According to Flemish folk tradition, in this feast, the king of the celebration is chosen by chance, being the one who finds a bean in his cake. Other Flemish artists, such as Jordaens, depicted this celebration in the same way, reflecting its most festive mome
Some villagers converse while going about their peasant tasks. This work is one of the rural scenes showing everyday life in the Flemish countryside, of which Teniers made many, especially during the sixteen forties, when he gradually abandoned the indoor scenes that had also made him famous. The presence of a block in the foreground —in this case, a house— and a perspective of the lan
The foreground display of numerous military elements, banners, drums, cuirasses and weapons, leads to a genre painting showing some soldiers resting in the background. On the left of the composition, one of the pages works to hang up the soldiers' clothes. Here, as in his other works, Teniers shows his capacity to use light to achieve a perfect representation of the qualities of the objects depict
Some villagers smoke and chat at the door of a tavern. A woman is coming out the door, carrying the food they were waiting for. On the right, some peasants chat in a friendly manner. The church of a nearby village is visible in the background, and across the plains, another town is visible. Here, Teniers had Lucas van Uden paint the landscape. The latter used a warm evening light derived from his
Francesco Donato, ambassador to Spain (1504), England (1509) and Florence (1512), maintained Venice’s neutrality in the war between Charles V and Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor, and contributed to the peace treaty with Soliman. Elected Doge at the age of 77, he remained in office until his death in 1553. The identification of the sitter is based on the existence of two versions of the portrait, sin
Depictions of painting galleries became popular in the Netherlands at the beginning of the 17th century. The exhibition of paintings and other artistic or natural objects was originally a way of manifesting the high social standing of an eminently bourgeois class with a strong desire to ennoble itself. In many cases, the paintings did not rigorously reflect the client’s collection, but served inst
A group of villagers pass the time by testing their aim with a bow. One shoots at the target placed in the ruins of a wall while the others look on, standing or sitting, and a small group converse. The horizontal layout of this composition is more pronounced than in other scenes by this painter, which reinforces the idea of movement in the event. Stylistic motives like the evening light that flood
This work is part of the series of six panels of monkey scenes in the Museo Nacional del Prado (from P01805 to P01810). The subject matter is drawn from the oeuvre of Pieter Brueghel the Elder and Peter van der Borcht, which has been associated with the foolishness of man since the Middle Ages. Teniers successfully captures the ambivalence of mankind in its animal nature.A group plays cards in the
A monkey dressed as a sculptor works in his studio, making a statue of a satyr while another helps him and a third, dressed in elegant clothes, watches his work attentively. Other works by the artist are visible in the background, including the tomb of another simian. This work is paired with The Monkey Painter (P01805) and both offer Tenier´s critical vision of merely imitative artistic activity.
