The Bagpipe Player
| The Bagpipe Player | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Lua error in Module:Infobox_mapframe at line 197: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). | |
| Artist | Jacob Jordaens |
| Year | 1638–1640 |
| Medium | Oil on canvas |
| Movement | Flemish Baroque |
| Dimensions | 110 cm × 90 cm (43 in × 35 in) |
| Location | Rubenshuis, Antwerp |
The Bagpipe Player is an oil painting by the Flemish artist Jacob Jordaens depicting the artist himself dressed as a musician blowing a bagpipe.[1] It was bought in London in 2009 for 93,000 Euros by the King Baudouin Foundation with funds from the Léon Courtin-Marcelle Bouché Foundation, which also financed its restoration. It is now on display in the Rubenshuis in Antwerp.[2]
Subject
[edit | edit source]The Bagpipe Player was painted 'after life' and is dated to the period of 1638–1640[1] or 1640–1645[3] depending on the sources. It is executed in oil on canvas and measures 90 x 110 cm.[1]
Jacob Jordaens sat himself as the model for the painting. Even so, the painting is not regarded as a self-portrait. The precise meaning of the painting has remained unclear. The artist used his own image in a number of other paintings, including the version of As the Old Sing, So the Young Pipe in the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Valenciennes, which dates from a slightly later date than the Bagpipe player. There are at least three more works by the master (or his workshop) in which the artist's own image appears.[1]
As Jordaens was already a successful artist when he painted the work it is not obvious why he depicted himself as a humble player of a bagpipe, an instrument used in popular music. In more formal self-portraits, Jordaens has represented himself with a lute, which in the 17th century was regarded as the noblest musical instrument. Jordaens' depiction of himself as a bagpipe player may be interpreted as a form of self-mockery.[3]
Notes
[edit | edit source]- ^ a b c d De doedelzakspeler at Barok in de Zuidelijke Nederlanden (in Dutch)
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value). (in Dutch)
- ^ a b Jacob Jordaens, The Bagpipe Player at Cultural Heritage