A Monk reading

Alfred van Muyden (1818-1898) was born in Lausanne. He became the pupil of Wilhelm von Kaulbach at the Fine Arts Academy in Munich in 1838. He continued his studies in Rome and later settled in Geneva before going back to Rome for six years. He came back definitively to Geneva in 1856. He married the sister of the painter Etienne Duval, who was also the grand-daughter of Wolgang-Adam Töpffer. Their three sons, Albert-Steven, Evert and Henri also became painters.

This painting is a fine example of Muyden’s genre scenes almost entirely taken from scenes of daily life in Rome. The humble life of the Capuchin monks, who followed St Francis in their ministry to the common people, was of a particular interest to him. By comparison with similar works, the painting may be dated in the 1850s. This type of pictures was particularly popular in the second half of the 19th century.