The Feast of Saint Nicholas
The Feast of Saint Nicholas is an oil-on-canvas painting executed c. 1665–1668 by Dutch master Jan Steen, which is now in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. It measures 82 x 70.5 cm. The picture, painted in the chaotic Jan Steen style, depicts a family at home on December 5, the night celebrated in the Netherlands as the Feast of Saint Nicholas, or Sinterklaas.
The Feast of Saint Nicholas
Detail of the painting with the youngest daughter holding her doll
Two versions exist of Jan Steen's Sinterklaasavond. The best known copy of these (now kept in the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam) was made for a Catholic. The girl in the center was given a doll dressed up as a saint. In this version, apparently made for a Protestant, the girl was given a simple round piece of gingerbread. It is the Museum Catharijneconvent in Utrecht.
Jan Havickszoon Steen was a Dutch Golden Age painter, one of the leading genre painters of the 17th century. His works are known for their psychological insight, sense of humour and abundance of colour.
Self portrait (c. 1663–1665) in the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum
Jan Steen Peasants before an Inn
Woman at her Toilet, 1663
The Bowling Game, c. 1655
