The Country Pub
circa 1660
David Teniers the Younger was the master of capturing the rowdy, unpolished life of 17th-century Flemish peasants, essentially creating the 'reality TV' of the Baroque era. In this lively tavern scene, you can almost smell the stale beer and pipe tobacco as the characters gather around a makeshift barrel table. The older man in the foreground, casually lighting his long clay pipe, seems to be the ringleader of this merry chaos, while others argue and drink in the shadows behind him. Teniers painted hundreds of these scenes, finding beauty and humor in the everyday struggles of common folk rather than just painting kings and queens.
Views: 2