Figure 1.--We are not sure when this work, "Youths in a Tavern" was painted, but would have been done during the period Sweerts was in the Netherlands which would mean probanly the 1650s. The boys seem to be enjoying themselves in a tavern, attempting to act like older men--both smoking and drinking. There does not seem to have been an age limit on drinking at the time. An older man in the doorway, however, clearly does not approve. Unlike some other Dutch genre paintings, one gets the idea that this was set up by the artist, rather than depicting actual everyday life. Notice that the trunk hose of the 15th and early 16th centuries have now evolved into clearly discernble knee breeches..

Most artists have an obvious national affiliation. Sweerts is difficult to assign to one country. He was born in Brussels, located in modern Belgium, during 1624. As a young artist he lived and painted in Rome. By the late 1650s he was living in Amsterdam. He left for Portuguese Goa (India) in 1662. Portugal was the first European power to reach India by sea and Goa was a Spanish colony there. Sweerts spent the last 2 years of his life there. While Sweerts nationality is somewhat confused, his art is clearly of the 17th century Dutch school with wondrful genre paintings of everyday life, including children and their clothes. We are not sure when this work, "Youths in a Tavern" was painted, but would have been done during the period Sweerts was in the Netherlands which would mean probanly the 1650s. The boys seem to be enjoying themselves in a tavern, attempting to act like older men--both smoking and drinking. There does not seem to have been an age limit on drinking at the time. An older man in the doorway, however, clearly does not approve. Unlike some other Dutch genre paintings, one gets the idea that this was set up by the artist, rather than depicting actual everyday life. Notice that the trunk hose of the 15th and early 16th centuries have now evolved into clearly discernble knee breeches.

Created: July 26, 2003
Last updated: July 26, 2003