Bagpipe Paintings: Jacob Jordaens


Never have I run across an artist who appears to use a bagpiper in just about every other picture they do. This guy even has over 10 versions of the same painting! I'm just guessing that he was a piper as the painting "Man Playing the Bagpipes" is supposedly a self portrait. This same piper appears in two other paintings of Jordaens but I will let you discover these for yourself below.

Click on the images to make them bigger or reveal the full picture.



Ruben's best student, Jacob Jordaens painted "the Bean King" in 1638 based on the festival of the Bean King which took place every year on January 6th. The bagpiper looks as though he's working awful hard.


This drawing is almost exactly the previous image, there's just some stuff added...


Yet another in "the King Drinks" series. The guy vomiting in the lower left corner makes it for me almost as much as the baby getting "tended to" in the lower right. ;-)


"As the Old Sang, So the Young Pipe" from 1638; get used to this one.


"As the Old Ones Sing, So Also the Young Ones Pipe" Sorry, for most of these I have no color versions.


"As the Old Ones Sing, So Also the Young Ones Pipe"


"As the Old Ones Sing, So Also the Young Ones Pipe"


This image is called "the King Drinks" which appears to be the same subject for it is the same painter and same year. Again the piper isn't the center of attention (how can that be?!) but he's looking pretty tired.


This one in from John Tose.


This study called "the Bagpiper" appears to be an example of Jordaens working out the Bagpiper quirks for all of these pictures.


This is the supposed self portrait of Jacob Jordaens entitled "Man playing the Bagpipes"


And this appears to be the same piper with some of his comrades. This is called "Three Musicians" which is funny because it is the second Jordaens piece with that title although the second (more famous I might add) doesn't include a player of bagpipes!


Again, same piper but it appears that this time they've drawn a crowd. "Serenade"


A still life by Jordaens and Peter Boel and if you look hard enough you can see the pipes in the main picture. Again, no color yet.