Smiling Young Man Squeezing Grapes 1622

Gerard van Honthorst painted this image of a Smiling Young Man Squeezing Grapes some time in the 17th century. Here we have a genre scene, a moment of everyday life elevated to the level of art. The young man’s theatrical smile and flamboyant hat, the sensual act of squeezing grapes, and the intimacy of the composition all point to the taverns of Utrecht. Van Honthorst was part of a group of Dutch painters who had spent time in Rome and who were influenced by Caravaggio’s dramatic lighting and his focus on ordinary people. They brought these techniques back to the Netherlands and applied them to scenes of Dutch life. Honthorst's paintings often carried moral messages, referencing the pleasures and the follies of life. To interpret this image, art historians consult period literature, looking at popular songs and morality tales and the importance of the tavern in Dutch social life. Art always exists within a social context, and the historian helps to reveal the values and beliefs that shaped its creation.