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Isack van Ostade, 'The Interior of a Barn with Two Peasants', about 1645

About the work

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 bales of straw. The window does little to illuminate the rest of the vast space, leaving another figure almost lost in the shadows, crouching over a tiny fire in the background.

This is an early work of Isack van Ostade, painted while he was still working alongside his older brother and teacher, Adriaen, who also painted scenes of peasant life. Isack later produced atmospheric and intricately detailed winter scenes, but he died young, before he could fulfil his potential.

Key facts

Full title
The Interior of a Barn with Two Peasants
Artist
Isack van Ostade
Artist dates
1621 - 1649
Date made
about 1645
Medium and support
oil on wood
Dimensions
30.2 × 40.2 cm
Acquisition credit
Presented by the Misses Rachel F. and Jean I. Alexander; entered the Collection, 1972
Inventory number
NG6404
Location
Not on display
Collection
Main Collection

About this record

If you know more about this painting or have spotted an error, please contact us. Please note that exhibition histories are listed from 2009 onwards. Bibliographies may not be complete; more comprehensive information is available in the National Gallery Library.

More works by Isack van Ostade

A Farmyard
A Farmyard
Isack van Ostade
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 th...
Not on display
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...
Not on display
A Winter Scene
A Winter Scene
Isack van Ostade
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...
Not on display
The Outskirts of a Village, with a Horseman
The Outskirts of a Village, with a Horseman
Isack van Ostade
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...
Not on display