Artwork
El pasatiempo
El pasatiempo is an oil painting by the Post-Impressionist artist Joaquín María Herrer y Rodríguez. It dates from 1892 and is held in the collection of the Museo del Prado.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
El pasatiempo presents an interior scene centered on a Bargueño desk, a traditional Spanish writing cabinet, flanked by a vase and a mirror.
El pasatiempo presents an interior scene centered on a Bargueño desk, a traditional Spanish writing cabinet, flanked by a vase and a mirror. The table and bed at the margins anchor the setting as a private study or bedroom, evoking themes of leisure and intellectual pursuit. The composition’s still-life arrangement, arranged objects and reflective surfaces, invites contemplation of domestic life and the passage of time, aligning with the nineteenth-century taste for domestic genre scenes that carried symbolic weight beyond mere depiction.
Technique & Style
El pasatiempo is an oil painting executed on a canvas support by Joaquín María Herrer y Rodríguez in 1884. The work measures 100 cm in height and 138 cm in width. As a painting classified within the medium of oil paint, the piece depicts a still life arrangement featuring a vase, a mirror, a Bargueño desk, a table, and a bed.
The composition relies on the traditional application of oil pigments to the canvas surface to render these domestic objects.
History & Provenance
Joaquín María Herrer y Rodríguez created the oil painting El pasatiempo in 1884. Executed on canvas, the work measures 100 cm in height and 138 cm in width. The piece is currently held in the collection of the Museo del Prado in Madrid, where it remains part of the institution's holdings.
No specific details regarding the original commission, earlier ownership history, or the circumstances of its acquisition by the museum are provided in the available records.
Overview
El pasatiempo, executed in oil in 1892 by the Spanish painter Joaquín María Herrer y Rodríguez, presents an interior scene rendered with meticulous attention to furnishings and décor. The composition centers on a domestic space that includes a bed, a Bargueño desk, and a mirror, all set against richly draped curtains and a patterned rug.
Context
The late 1800s in Spain saw a renewed interest in genre scenes that documented contemporary domesticity. Herrer y Rodríguez’s choice of a tranquil interior aligns with this trend, offering a visual record of interior design, fashion, and pet ownership among the middle class of the period.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Joaquín María Herrer y Rodríguez
Joaquín María Herrer y Rodríguez (1840–1917) was an artist, born in Madrid.
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