Spring

TODAY IT IS THE FIRST DAY OF SPRING!

We are based in Europe, in Poland in particular, so the past months were dark, gloomy, and when combined with pandemics, quite difficult for us. The first day of Spring, which is today, gives us a lot of hope, at least for the higher temperatures and some sun. So, enjoy today's painting!  : )

This painting comes from a series of four small paintings that is an allegory of the four seasons. Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter have been given human forms that embody the essence of each season. Summer is a peasant tying up a sheaf of corn; Autumn is a drinker who raises a glass of wine (love that!); and Winter is an old man wearing a fur cap and mantle, warming himself near a brazier.

David Teniers has placed each character, of an appropriate age and dressed accordingly, in the foreground, with a symbolic object also given prominence. In the background, other figures, less posed, appear doing work or other activities associated with the season, depicted in a more realistic way. Here, Spring is personified as a young gardener with a bushy beard, heaving a heavy pot containing a sapling. His step is jaunty and he has a gleam in his eye. His jacket looks new, and his red waistcoat and cap with the feather warm up the otherwise chilly background.

Overhead, wispy grey clouds bear the signs of April showers to come, and the trees in the background are leafless and windblown. A figure in a long gown walks up the hill; perhaps it is Winter making way for Spring.

Other gardeners dig the soil. They appear to have traced a pattern in the earth to follow when planting new trees, making a formal garden in the fashionable style set by French designers and followed with a keen interest in Flanders.

Allegorical paintings of the seasons were popular at the time, and Teniers painted several versions of the subject. The four pictures from the National Gallery are displayed in one frame as a set, but elsewhere they are shown as four separate entities. In some cases, only one or two of the set has survived (one of these, often called The Toper, but possibly a personification of Autumn, is in the National Gallery’s collection). They are often almost exact copies. The rather idle young man in Summer seems to have been repeated several times, and the hat of the figure in Winter is almost always a copy of the one shown here. It seems that Teniers was cashing in on the popularity of the series and turning them out quickly to fulfil demand.

Isn't it cute? Happy Spring everyone!

P.S. Spring is this week's theme in DailyArt Magazine! Don't forget to sign up for our weekly newsletter here. <3