Jan Steen, In Luxury Beware, c. 1665

Jan Steen’s In Luxury Beware, is not very ambiguous in how it addresses the tensions between wealth and morality. In the 17th century Dutch world, wealth was perceived to be a “moral agitator;” it was necessary for the economic success of society as a whole, but dangerous in its ability to engineer the downfall of Dutch morality. The abundance of useless and dangerous objects in Steen’s painting address this idea of the dangers of wealth. It is precisely the excessive wealth of this household that brought about this promiscuous scene. Gone is the hardworking, closely knit Dutch family that was so important in structuring their culture. With this abundance of wealth comes unnecessary consumption; too much food, drink, luxury and sexual promiscuity. The fear of wealth being the agent of the society’s downfall is shown here through the moral downfall of this household. Seymore Slive emphasizes Steen’s painting as an art that “revels in profusion,” this profusion of material objects emphasizes the negative nature of the wealth that is shown here. Too much of anything, it seems, can't be a good thing.

While the content of the picture seems to be a well-intended moralizing lesson on the dangers in wealth and over-consumption, the fact that the painting in itself is a luxury object of value somewhat contradicts this. However, although paintings are luxurious objects, they are a craft produced by the humble artist to enhance his culture, and are therefore more virtuous than other material objects. With its abundance of everything else it is noteworthy that this house does not contain any pictures on the walls. Although the contemporary reports are few, they indicate that Dutch homes were filled with paintings. If this be the case, than this particular Dutch home’s lack of art would indicate its lack of culture, or it’s refrain from embracing Dutch culture. If this family could afford everything else present in this room, it seems they surely could afford art as well as well. The lack of art then, as a deliberate omission by the artist, might further represent a lack of culture on behalf of this morally agitated household.

References:

Jansen, Guido (ed.). Jan Steen: Painter and Storyteller. Washington D.C.: National Gallery of Art, 1996.

Schama, Simon. The Embarrassment of Riches: An Interpretation of Dutch Culture in the Golden Age. Vintage, 1997.

Slive, Seymour. Dutch Painting: 1600-1800. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1998.

Art:

Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna