A Father Reading the Bible to his Family
This piece of Dutch-inspired narrative genre painting is by an unknown artist copying Greuze. Greuzeâs reputation remained high throughout the 19th century, not only as a painter of sentimental young ladies but also as a painter of serious moralising genre. Such a worthy activity as shown in this picture would have had wide appeal in the early 19th century in England and it is likely, on grounds of style, that the copy is English. The original by Greuze was exhibited in the Paris salon of 1755. Jean-Baptiste Greuze made his name in the Paris Salon of 1755 with the original of this painting. Much of his fame derived from the popularity of engravings after his works, fully exploited by a number of engravers and, less profitably, by the artist, whose wife embezzled most of the proceeds. Our painting is reversed from the original, which was at Dresden, and now appears lost. This is almost certainly a copy made from the engraving. The subject matter is typical of Greuze, who specialized in depicting the daily life of the middle classes. Religion in the past played a central part in everyday life, more so than today. All but the poorest families would own a Bible, which they would not only read and study together, but would use to record births and deaths. In the days before schools, radio and TV, the bible would be of the utmost importance as a source not only of religious instruction, but learning and entertainment.
