Follower of David Teniers the Younger, Flemish... Lot 31

Follower of David Teniers the Younger, Flemish 1610-1690- A man holding a stoneware flagon and clay pipe; oil on copper, oval, 18.8 x 14.4 cm. Provenance: Private Collection, UK. Note: The present work is reminiscent of the early style of David Teniers the Younger, from around the 1630s. Teniers is particularly celebrated for his depiction of everyday scenes and interiors, to which he applied his exceptional powers of description. The anonymous artist here, likely an early follower of the Flemish master, has adopted a similar approach, clearly taking delight in the highly realistic representation of the male figure, as well as in the everyday objects of the flagon and pipe, and the subject’s jaunty hat and feather. First introduced into Flemish art by Adriaen Brouwer (1605-1638), the subject of the smoker allowed artists the opportunity to explore fresh permutations of facial expressions. The subject was eagerly adopted by the young Teniers, and soon became one of the central themes of his genre paintings set in taverns and other interiors. Unlike Brouwer, whose pictures frequently contained an admonitory tone, Teniers' depictions of smokers and drinkers are more detached, objective, and predominantly comedic in tone, favouring grotesque characterisations as a means of conveying a sense of ribald comedy. In addition to its patent similarities to such works by Teniers and Brouwer, the present work bears resemblances too, to certain compositions by Joos van Craesbeeck (c.1605-c.1661) including, notably, his ‘Le Fumeur’, held in the Louvre [MI 906]. Please refer to department for condition report