Jan Steen was born in Leiden, Netherlands. Though it isn’t confirmed, he’s thought to have been born in 1626. Steen stood out amongst his peers by painting very lively and comedic indoor scenes.
In 1646, Jan Steen attended the University of Leiden. There, he became one of the founding members of the Leiden Painter’s Guild. One of his teachers was Jan van Goyen, a landscape painter. Steen ended up marrying Goyen’s daughter, Margaretha, in September of 1649.
In his early works, he made landscapes with small and earthy figures, a stark contrast to his more famous paintings, which included scenes of people who had very characterized personalities. In his last years, his paintings became less energetic and more elegant.
I chose to write about this artist because his paintings looked very fun. The people in his scenes look alive. It’s rare to see paintings from this time period that display so much energy. The people in these scenes look like someone you could talk to, someone who had friends, and made jokes. I also enjoy the messiness of the settings. There’s usually an object thrown on the floor, or put away in an untidy manner. I find it to be very honest.
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