Adriaen van Ostade, Frans Hals, and the art-loving Van den Heuvel family

FRANS GRIJZENHOUT

Adriaen van Ostade’s 1654 portrait of an unidentified family has always been one of the public favorites in the Louvre (fig. 1).1 A husband and wife lovingly hold hands while seated amidst a large family of children spanning a wide range of ages. Some are unable or barely able to stand, while others are clearly older, adults in fact.