Ostade

a family of Dutch painters.

Adriaen van Ostade. Baptized Dec. 10, 1610, in Haarlem; buried there May 2, 1685. One of the masters of the peasant genre in 17th-century Dutch painting.

Ostade was most likely a pupil of Frans Hals. Initially influenced by A. Brouwer, Ostade painted coarsely grotesque scenes of carousals and brawls. At the end of the 1630’s, he came under the influence of Rembrandt and his works took on brownish-golden tones and were marked by an emphasis on chiaroscuro. The general mood of his paintings of this period was one of good-natured humor and gentle contemplation, for example, The Flutist (c. 1660; Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow). Ostade’s graphic works (etchings, watercolors, drawings) are distinguished by a picturesque quality and astute observations of life.

Isack van Ostade. Baptized July 2, 1621, in Haarlem; buried there Oct. 16, 1649. Brother and pupil of Adriaen, who influenced his early works.

Ostade’s works of the 1640’s, which included outdoor scenes and landscapes (especially winter landscapes), were distinguished by a silvery palette that subtly conveyed the elusive qualities of light, for example, The Frozen Lake (1642; Hermitage, Leningrad).