A Merry Company

Jacob Duck (Dutch, about 1600–1667)

1630–33

Medium/TechniqueOil on panel

Dimensions47.62 x 31.75 cm (18 3/4 x 12 1/2 in.)

Credit LineGift of Maida and George Abrams in memory of Stephen D. Paine

Accession number1997.304

On View

Not on view

ClassificationsPaintings

Collections

Europe

Description

This work by Duck, an artist best known for his images of guardrooms and brothels, is a "merry company" painting showing young people amusing themselves in fancy dress. The sensuous life-reflected in indications of music making, eating, and drinking as well as in the cloak, sword, and spurs of the soldier-is the ostensible subject of many "merry company" paintings. A document of 1636 refers to Duck's paintings as "moderne beeldekens" (modern paintings with contemporary figures). The elegance of the figures and the quiet mood emphasize ideas about respectability and upper-bourgeois manners. Typical of Duck's work is the recycling of individuals, groups of figures, accessories, and still -life details, suggesting that he kept a stock of props in his studio and also worked from a repertoire of drawings.

Provenance1972, Jon Nicholas Streep, New York; 1972, sold by Streep to Maida and George Abrams, Newton, MA; 1997, gift of Maida and George Abrams to the MFA. (Accession Date: January 21, 1998)

NOTE:
This painting was formerly attributed to Pieter Codde.