Circle of Jan Miense Molenaer (Haarlem, ca. 1610 – 1668), Genre Scene

Circle of Jan Miense Molenaer (Haarlem, ca. 1610 – 1668) Genre Scene Oil on canvas, cm 87 x 69 Frame, cm 88 x 105 Jan Miense Molenaer was a Dutch painter, one of the exponents of the period known as the Golden Age. His activity, which unfolded between his native city of Haarlem and Amsterdam, was influenced by his encounter with painters such as Rembrandt and Frans Hals. His style, initially close to that of Hals, but subsequently, more precisely during his period of stay in Amsterdam, closer to that of painters such as Adriaen van Ostade and Adriaen Brouwer, is characterized by a pronounced realism and a lenticular rendering of the gestures and physiognomies of the individuals represented. A genre painter, he mainly depicted musicians, but also many tavern scenes, religious scenes, and portraits. Molenaer was a cultured painter and his iconographies are often inspired by the proverbs and poems of Jacob Cats and Gerbrand Adriaensz. Equally evident are the works that allude to the five senses. His works are exhibited in Amsterdam, Berlin, Braunschweig, Budapest, Copenhagen, Krakow, Florence, Ghent, Manchester, Paris, Seattle, Stockholm, and Vienna. The canvas in question presents all the key characteristics of this author's production: the predilection for the representation of colorful tavern scenes, the great importance given to the light dimension and the refraction of light on the faces of the patrons and on the dress of the lady, the construction of a crowded scene within which characters of different social classes and from different realities meet and dialogue, and the meticulous rendering of physiognomic details and clothing. The painting bears the signature and date, J. Molenaer 1660. Although of excellent workmanship – see the rendering of the fabrics, the tableware, and the careful characterization of the figures – it is to be attributed to a painter active in the circle of the Master. The hand of this artist is so consistent with that of Molenaer, that in the 20th century the work was often attributed directly to him. Often these attributions were "corroborated" by a signature that obscured its true origin, as in the present case. However, the presence of great technical skill is undeniable here, making it a valuable work and representative of the more mature style of the great Molenaer.