Self-Portrait with Family Members
Self-Portrait with Family Members
Self-Portrait with Family Members
By Jan Miense Molenaer
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Self-Portrait with Family Members
Self-Portrait with Family Members
Self-Portrait with Family Members
The painter Jan Miense Molenaer portrays himself with his brothers, half-brothers and sisters in a genre tableau. On the left sits his oldest sister Geertruijt, playing the zither. Bartholomeus plays the violin, Adriaen the lute, Maria sings and keeps time while Anthonij plays cello. On the right we see the youngest children, Nicolaes and Lucia. Two half-brothers stand behind the harpsichord, children from his father’s previous marriage. The family portrait is full of symbolism. The depiction of music being made collectively expresses the harmony within the Molenaer family. The bubble-blowing relates to mortality.