Artwork
A Clean Sweep
A Clean Sweep is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Jan Miense Molenaer. It dates from 1635 and is held in the collection of the Kunsthaus Zürich.
About this work
Overview
Jan Miense Molenaer, a Dutch painter active during the 1630s, produced the oil on canvas work *A Clean Sweep* in 1635. The composition captures a cramped interior populated by six figures engaged in ordinary activities, a typical subject for genre painters of the Dutch Golden Age.
Subject & Meaning
The scene presents three men gathered around a table playing cards, a woman in a green dress holding a broom, and a child sweeping the floor. A small dog, a basket and a pig add to the domestic clutter, suggesting a snapshot of everyday household life rather than a narrative episode.
Technique & Style
Molenaer renders the figures with careful attention to the texture of fabric and the subtle modeling of faces. Light enters through a modest window, creating a gentle chiaroscuro that highlights the folds of clothing and the gleam on the children's broom, while the surrounding shadows give depth to the cramped space.
History & Provenance
The painting belongs to the body of work that established Molenaer as a forerunner of Jan Steen’s later genre scenes. He worked alongside his wife, Judith Leyster, in a shared studio, and their collaborative environment contributed to the development of lively domestic subjects in mid‑17th‑century Dutch art.
Context
*A Clean Sweep* reflects the Dutch Golden Age’s fascination with genre scenes that documented the routines of ordinary citizens. Such works often carried moral undertones, using everyday chores and leisure activities to comment on social behavior and the values of the time.
Artist & collection
Artist
Jan Miense Molenaer (1610 – buried 19 September 1668) was a Dutch Golden Age genre painter whose style was a precursor to Jan Steen's work during Dutch Golden Age painting.
