Likely to date to the second half of the 1630s, this brunaille by Adriaen van de Venne belongs to a series of satirical representations of marginalised, low-life figures accompanied by moralising inscriptions, which constitute a large proportion of Van de Venne’s artistic output. Here, beneath the jumble of limbs and rags is the inscription in gothic lettering: Mijd Lijden, a variant of the saying Mijdt Lijdt, meaning ‘avoid suffering’.
Adriaen van de Venne was born in Delft, his parents having fled from the Southern Netherlands to avoid religious persecution. He was a painter, poet and illustrator, his drawings often accompanied the writings of other moralising poets such as Jacob Cats and Johan de Brune. He is thought to have learnt the grisaille technique from his master Hieronymus van Diest (an obscure artist – not the later marine painter).