Hals, Frans (c.1582-1666)
Young Man and Woman in an Inn
1623
Oil on canvas, 105.4 x 79.4 cm
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Painted with the characteristically bold brushwork that Hals had learned from Flemish painting, this picture provides a gleefully nonjudgmental depiction of a young couple carousing in the doorway of an inn or brothel. Flushed cheeks and open-mouthed grins indicate that the pair has broken with contemporary rules of comportment. Yet even the humble interior in which they find themselves boasts a landscape painting above the mantelpiece. (MET)