Peasant Inn Scene, 17th century Old Master painting, Circle of Adriaen Brouwer

Circle of, or possibly by, Adriaen Brouwer

Adriaen Brouwer (1605/6 - 1638) was the greatest artist in the field of peasant art. He was already acclaimed during his lifetime, and his paintings were eagerly collected. This freely painted scene entirely breathes his style. It shows a lively couple of peasants around a small table. One of them firmly clasps a beer jug. Given the two chalk marks on the edge of the table, this fellow is emptying his third jug. Already quite tipsy, he sings a song while his friends stand by, smoking and grinning. Stylistically, this panel can be dated to the 1630s of the seventeenth century.
The Graphische Sammlung in Munich keeps a drawing in black chalk that shows the exact same composition and is possibly based on a lost painting by Brouwer. (inv. 1797). See: W. Wenger, Die niederländischen Handzeichnungen des 15.-18. Jahrhunderts: Kataloge der Staatlichen Graphischen Sammlung München, 2 vols., Berlin 1973.

Panel: W6.9'' / H8.86'', including frame: W12.8'' / H14.76''
Frame of a later date. Retouches.