Tickets
English
DonateMembershipTickets

The Smoker

ca. 1623–25
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 637
Embraced by a smiling companion, the central figure indulges in the newfangled vice of smoking tobacco, a recent import from the New World that greatly troubled Dutch moralists. The loose brushwork on this octagonal panel—its original shape—captures the bustle of a tavern interior.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: The Smoker
  • Artist: Frans Hals (Dutch, Antwerp 1582/83–1666 Haarlem)
  • Date: ca. 1623–25
  • Medium: Oil on wood
  • Dimensions: Octagonal, 18 3/8 x 19 1/2 in. (46.7 x 49.5 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: Marquand Collection, Gift of Henry G. Marquand, 1889
  • Object Number: 89.15.34
  • Curatorial Department: European Paintings

More Artwork

More Artwork
Merrymakers at Shrovetide, Frans Hals Dutch, Oil on canvas
Merrymakers at Shrovetide
Frans Hals
ca. 1616–17
Soprano Recorder in B, Thomas Coenraet Boekhout Dutch, Ebony, ivory, Dutch
Soprano Recorder in B
Thomas Coenraet Boekhout
ca. 1700
Piazza San Marco, Canaletto (Giovanni Antonio Canal) Italian, Oil on canvas
Piazza San Marco
Canaletto (Giovanni Antonio Canal)
late 1720s
Fish Market, Joachim Beuckelaer Netherlandish, Oil on Baltic oak
Fish Market
Joachim Beuckelaer
1568
Young Man and Woman in an Inn, Frans Hals Dutch, Oil on canvas
Young Man and Woman in an Inn
Frans Hals
1623

Related Content

Timeline of Art History

Entries and chronologies from The Met's art encyclopedia.

Publications

Books, guides, and catalogues published by The Met.

Research Resources

The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.

Feedback

We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please contact us using the form below. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.

Send feedback

Content Notice

The Metropolitan Museum of Art presents over 5,000 years of art from around the world, and our online collection reflects ongoing work conducted over the course of our more than 150-year history. You may encounter objects or images that may be inappropriate for some viewers or information that may be outdated.