Seated Man Smoking a Pipe by Candlelight while Houses Outside Are Ablaze, Cornelis Troost, 1739

brown and grey wash, with white heightening, h 284mm × w 208mm More details

This man smokes his a pipe contentedly at home while a fire rages outside. What Troost was trying to convey with this depiction is not entirely clear. A man warming himself by the heat of another man’s blazing house was considered a symbol of Selfishness in the 16th century. In the 18th century, Troost was known for his satirical approach, ridiculing life in and outside the sitting room.