Jan Steen

Jan Steen was born in Southern Holland and based many of paintings off of the daily life he saw around him. The 17th Century Dutch painter chose a chaotic approach to his paintings that showcased a “socially inclusive mode of comedy” (Cloutier-Blazzard 92). For example, Fantasy Interior (Fig. 1), is one of his most famous paintings both for the quality it is rendered and the mystery behind it’s meaning. This painting was first seen as a portrait of his family in-law, but it has been recently proposed that this is actually a parody of a friend who happened to receive a lucky inheritance.

I find paintings like this very interesting as I enjoy satire and comedy that is hidden well within detailed art pieces. I love that Steen’s work is so purposefully done, in both skill and conception.

Figure 1: Fantasy Interior

The World Turned Upside Down

Rhetoricians at a Window

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Works Cited

Cloutier-Blazzard, Kimberlee A. “The Elephant in the Living Room: Jan Steen’s Fantasy Interior as Parodic Portrait of the Schouten Family.” Aurora, The Journal of the History of Art, 2010, p. 91. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.capilanou.ca/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsglr&AN=edsgcl.249790933&site=eds-live&scope=site.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Steen