Leper House at Cleves 1650 - 1651

Jan van Goyen rendered "Leper House at Cleves" in graphite and gray wash. Though van Goyen was a prolific and successful landscape painter during the Dutch Golden Age, his choice of subject matter here directs our attention to the stark realities of 17th-century life. The leper house, or lazaretto, was a place of isolation and confinement for those suffering from leprosy, now known as Hansen's disease, then a highly stigmatized and poorly understood illness. This drawing provides a glimpse into the social and physical landscape of exclusion, reflecting the period’s attitudes toward disease, disability, and the body. The drawing's emotional weight lies in its stark simplicity, inviting contemplation on themes of human suffering and social alienation. Van Goyen’s depiction, while documentary, also subtly probes the emotional and psychological dimensions of life on the margins of society. It invites us to reflect on our own attitudes toward illness, difference, and the ways in which societies create spaces of exclusion.