Pijprokende man in een schuur 1836 - 1886

"Pijprokende man in een schuur" (Smoking Man in a Barn), an etching by Hendrik Jacobus Scholten, depicts a man seated on a bench in a barn, smoking a pipe. This intimate scene, created sometime between 1836 and 1886, provides a glimpse into rural life. Scholten's detailed use of hatching and cross-hatching creates a sense of depth and texture, giving the viewer a feel for the space and the materials of the barn. The work's focus on everyday life and its realistic portrayal of figures and objects are characteristic of Realism, a movement that emphasized the mundane over the idealized.