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Isack van Ostade, 'A Farmyard', about 1640

Key facts
Full title A Farmyard
Artist Isack van Ostade
Artist dates 1621 - 1649
Date made about 1640
Medium and support oil on wood
Dimensions 40 × 41 cm
Inscription summary Signed
Acquisition credit Bought, 1891
Inventory number NG1347
Location Not on display
Collection Main Collection
A Farmyard
Isack van Ostade
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Isack van Ostade shows us a farmyard with a forsaken air, tranquil and atmospheric. Under an ancient oak tree a patch of sunlight picks out a wooden pen, a shelf above it holding an earthenware pot and a sieve. Behind them, a cart wheel and a basket lie forgotten in an old shed – its withering thatch will be little help against the threatening rain cloud overhead. Only the hen and two cockerels pecking for food give any sign of life in this ramshackle place, a bunch of feathery black tail feathers standing out against the surrounding clutter.

The picture is painted in meticulous detail. Isack was the younger brother and student of Adriaen van Ostade, whose work also appears in the National Gallery’s collection. Sadly, Isack died at the age of 28, before his potential could be fulfilled.

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More paintings by Isack van Ostade

A Landscape with Peasants and a Cart
A Landscape with Peasants and a Cart
Isack van Ostade
In a mellow light, a group of peasants pause by a muddy pool in the shade of an oak tree. A woman perched high on a cart holds a basket and looks around her. Away in the distance to the right, a church spire and a windmill seem as delicate as cobwebs against the sky.Isack van Ostade paints the sc...
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A Winter Scene
A Winter Scene
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Isack van Ostade’s little village seems to be a hard place to live. Although there’s no snow, the grey clouds threaten and there is a feeling of bone-chilling cold. The old cottage on top of the bank is ramshackle and touched with frost, its roof hardly robust enough to keep out the weather. And...
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The Interior of a Barn with Two Peasants
The Interior of a Barn with Two Peasants
Isack van Ostade
Light spills in through a window high up on the towering wall of the barn. It picks out a sturdy woman with her sleeves rolled up, her arms in a tub – she’s perhaps washing clothes. Around her, discarded articles – an earthenware jar, a wicker basket, some colourful rags – are heaped up among bal...
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The Outskirts of a Village, with a Horseman
The Outskirts of a Village, with a Horseman
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Life seems to amble along in this painting: there’s time for the horseman to pause, for the man beside him to communicate with his dogs and for two people to chat. The countryside setting appears almost timeless, though Isack van Ostade has explored the effects of time. Light flickers up the wall...
Room 23
An Inn by a Frozen River
An Inn by a Frozen River
Follower of Isack van Ostade
In the Dutch Republic at this time, paintings were a means of entertainment – scenes of outdoor life were meant to hold moments of interest that had to be teased out. Although it’s not immediately evident, this picture does exactly that.The huge expanse of sky is grey; the pub roof is almost fall...
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