Old Master painting encompasses all works created from the Middle Ages to the end of the 18th century. During the medieval period, sacred art dominated, executed in tempera on wood and intended for churches and chapels. These paintings were distinguished by their masterful craftsmanship and extraordinary attention to detail.
Jan Baptist Lambrechts, Genre scene in an inn, 27 x 24 cm, ca. mid-18th century
An intimate oil painting on board attributed to Jan Baptist Lambrechts, a leading painter of genre scenes of 18th-century Flanders. The composition shows a couple in an inn: the woman turns to the man reproachfully, the man looks away, holding a jug and a glass. The scene alludes to everyday domestic tensions and the problem of alcohol abuse. The painting is distinguished by realistic social observation, the play of light and the artist's characteristic details like a plate with clamshells and a white scarf. The subject matter and style are perfectly in line with the trend of moralistic bourgeois painting popular in Flanders.
Jan Baptist Lambrechts, Genre scene in an inn, 28 x 24 cm, ca. mid-18th century
An intimate genre scene, attributed to Flemish painter John Baptist Lambrechts. The center of the depiction is formed by three figures: a woman in a red skirt and green kaftan with a distinctive white scarf around her neck, a man in a red cap and a woman standing behind, who participates in the conversation. Next to her stands a set table, covered with a colorful cloth, on which the white shawl - a hallmark of inn scenes by Lambrechts - could not be missing. A gesticulating man addresses a woman who, with a glass in her hand, looks calmly at the viewer. On her shoulders is a white shawl tied over her breasts: an element characteristic of Lambrechts' painting, present in almost all his depictions of women.
The painting betrays the characteristics of a good painter's workshop such as skillfully developed chiaroscuro, the way of depicting the details of fabrics and tableware attest to the artist's technical maturity. The composition is static, but full of subtle emotional tensions.