The Smoker
The loose brushwork on this octagonal panel—its original shape—captures the bustle of a tavern interior as caught in a corner of the viewer's eye. Although the painting's attribution to Hals has been questioned occasionally, the execution is entirely typical of his less ambitious genre pictures dating from the 1620s.
Credit: Marquand Collection, Gift of Henry G. Marquand, 1889
c. 1623-25
Oil on wood
46.7 x 49.5cm
89.15.34
Image and text © Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2019
Where you'll find this
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Permanent collection