The Anglers,

ca. 1647

Ostade specialized in sympathetic scenes of Dutch peasants engaged in a wide spectrum of social activities within the context of village squares, inns, or barns; this is his only work in which landscape dominates the figures. Less anecdotal in approach than Vrancx’s painting of rural pastimes, shown above, Ostade’s etching captures the stillness of a hazy summer day with subtle atmospheric effects. A contemplative mood of enjoyable idleness is conveyed by the older, hunched man allowing his fishing line to trail in a shallow stream and by the small boy holding a basket for the elusive fish.