The Doctor’s Visit c. 1665 - 1668

Jan Steen offers us ‘The Doctor’s Visit,’ a scene painted during the Dutch Golden Age, a period of unprecedented economic and cultural growth in the Netherlands. Steen, a genre painter, was known for capturing the everyday, often chaotic, life of ordinary people. This scene might seem straightforward, but it's laced with social commentary. Look closely. Is the doctor truly concerned, or is something else at play? The woman offering the wine—is she a concerned family member, or is there a hint of knowing complicity in her eyes? The painting seems to ask: who holds power in the domestic sphere? The details—the elaborate bed, the expensive-looking garments, and the painting of nudes on the wall—suggest a certain level of affluence, yet also a vulnerability to the social mores of the time. Steen’s work invites us to consider the unspoken narratives within these domestic spaces, narratives often dictated by gender and class. It's a vivid reminder that what appears ordinary on the surface is often anything but.