Mastodawn

"The Feast of St. Nicholas," Jan Steen, 1665-8.

Steen (1626-79) was famous for his scenes of everyday life, which were both sentimental but also humorous.

In this Yuletide scene, the good little girl has a bucket of treats, while the sobbing brother has none...but grandmother seems to be beckoning to him from the back, hinting she may have a surprise for him. Another brother points up the chimney to amaze a youngster. There's a miniature still life in the lower left corner, and an assortment of goodies here and there. One child holds a gingerbread man in the form of St. Nicholas himself.

The scene is chaotic and jumbled, a hallmark of Steen's work, and many feel it was his way of depicting the society of the time. There's also a possible hint of darkness. The little girl's doll is John the Baptist; an odd selection for a child's toy. Some scholars have noted that John the Baptist is the patron of epileptics, and perhaps that it's an indication the girl has convulsions and that he's meant to watch over her.

Scenes of everyday life were popular in the Netherlands at the time, and Steen was popular for his visual storytelling & his tendency to poke gentle fun at society.

From the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.

#Art #JanSteen #DutchGoldenAge #GenreArt #StNicholas #HoHoHo

Śreżoga Dec 1

Bannik – spirit of bath house.

I was going to write something else, but a funny thought took my mind. If somehow the old beliefs survived to our times, how banniks work would look like when it goes to apartments house? Do every building had one or every single bathroom was occupied by little fellow, or maybe they move to public commercial sauna?

https://slavic.mythologyworldwide.com/the-mysterious-bannik-spirits-of-the-bathhouse-in-folklore/

Size: A4

#charcoal #genreart #bannik #slavicmythology