Jan Steen (1626–1679) - Dutch artist of the 17th century. This is the Golden Age of Holland painting. His works are known and recognizable for psychologism, sense of humor, plenty of light and colors.
The self-portrait with a lute, which was written by Jan Stan, clearly expresses the manner of his work and his attitude to the world and himself. And this despite the fact that his life was far from smooth.
Youth
Jan Stan came from a family of wealthy brewers in Leiden. He was the eldest of eight children and was educated in Leiden by the painter Nicholas Knupfer. At 22, Jan Stan and his comrade founded the Guild of St. Bows. A little later, he became an assistant to the popular landscape painter Goyen. The artist moved to the house of his teacher in The Hague, carried away and got married to his daughter Margaret. They had eight babies. Although as an artist, Stan was very prolific (in his entire life he painted about 800 paintings, of which about 400-450 were preserved), there was not enough money for living and maintaining a family.
Mature years
He had already moved to Delft, where he ran a three-year brewery. Pictures continued to write. In 1654, in Delft after the tragedy (explosion of powder depots), painting almost ceased to be in demand. Two periods turned out to be very fruitful for creativity. From 1656 to 1660, when the artist lived in Warmond, and from 1660 to 1670 in Haarlem.
Disaster strip
In 1669, his wife died, and Jan Stan, at the insistence of his father, returned to Leiden. He lived in it for the rest of his life. 1672 is a year of disaster and disaster, when the Dutch Republic was simultaneously attacked by England, France, and war broke out. Paintings, of course, became useless to anyone. Stan opened the tavern. It was difficult for a widower with children to manage the household, and in 1673 he married a widow with two children. They had another baby born. In 1674 he became the head of the guild of St. Bows. In 1679, the painter died in Leiden and is buried in a family crypt. This is a brief biography of a remarkable painter named Jan Steen. The biography is full of unpredictable troubles and tragedies, and the painting is filled with humor and playful genre scenes.
Creation
The Dutch so highly appreciate the talent of the master that they put him almost on a par with Rembrandt, Vermeer and Hals. The artist Jan Steen talks about a fun and dissolute life of entire families and individuals. His canvases are mostly multi-figured. Often they meet two or three characters, rarely one. Popular stories: doctor’s visit, holiday scenes, feast, a lady at the toilet. Each work is filled with carefully written details. Below you can see the work “Happy Family” (1668).
It gathered at a table on which there is a ham for everyone and bread, as well as a vessel with wine. The head of the family has already raised the goblet and cheerfully sings songs to the sounds of the pipes played by older children. One already empty bottle is lying on the floor, while the other vessel was taken over by younger children. Nobody pays attention to them. The mother, who holds the baby in her arms, became interested in reading the letter. His grandmother shows her. There is also a dog, who also wants to join in the general joy, having received a piece of ham. The painter heartily and good-naturedly looks at
this carefree world.
Characters the artist loves
Heroes Wall - most often wealthy citizens who know how and love to have fun.
The canvas “Rhetoric at the window” shows “scientists” who have already pretty much had fun at the table, and now want to exchange a word or two with passers-by. The character of each is reflected on the face, someone is complacent, someone is cheerful, someone is a bore. They are shown with good-natured irony. The artist masterfully owns both a psychological portrait and color.
The Booze
So at auctions they often call the painting from the Hermitage, which was written by Jan Stan in 1660. "Walkers" is her Russian name.
According to frequent estimates, this is his self-portrait with his wife Margaret. This is a complete story about living in poverty, but not in longing. “Wealth, honor, in the end, bring little happiness. And I am sorry for cowards and fools that the authorities are submissive to them, ”the artist could repeat after Burns.
The interior is dark and dirty. Copper dishes on the shelves do not shine, the walls are smoked. On the table, except for a pot-bellied bottle and a mug, there is nothing. Margaret, drinking, dozed, leaning on the table. A slipper fell off her leg, she dropped her pipe on the floor, and the dish and knife, or maybe a stray tablecloth, were about to fall from the table. But the owner merrily lights up the pipe and does not pay attention to these little things, that is, he sees them as a painter, with irony, and is completely indifferent to them as a person.
Creative dictation: Jan Steen, “Strict teacher”
What is a creative dictation? The teacher uses it to develop coherent speech, expand and enhance the vocabulary of his students, and improve spelling. It is of two types:
- On a specific topic, everyone selects and parses words, then makes sentences out of them, and then a story.
- First, the teacher reads text on a given topic. Then comes his analysis, the words are clarified that students must use. Only after this, the students freely present the material studied, not forgetting the required words.
To do this, you can consider the picture "Strict teacher" (1668).
The teacher is ready to punish anyone who will not be approximately engaged. In this case, he has a wooden mallet in his hands. In the foreground, the boy is diligently writing something. A child in blue, wiping away tears, listens to the teacher’s explanation. An older little boy peeks over his shoulder at him in a notebook. Once again, he is ready to listen to the explanation, then to repeat everything briskly and give the correct answer. The fourth child just listens to the speech. The teacher’s face (not so strict) expresses a lot of patience and a desire to clearly explain the difficult text to the kid.
Even in this seemingly moralizing canvas, the artist shows life as a comedy of morals, looking with complacency at the efforts of children and the teacher.