The Oyster Eater

[2] The main subject of the painting is a young woman salting oysters while making direct eye contact with the viewer.

[2] He uses the vertical and horizontal lines of the door frame, bed curtains, and the edge of the table to create an imaginary border around the young woman.

[2] The placement of objects such as the oyster point in a specific direction, allowing the viewer's eye to focus on the figures in the back room.

[2] The placement of the background figures in a separate room is common in Dutch paintings and is referred to as doorsien (view through a doorway).

[3] Artists like Steen added doorsien to paintings to create an atmosphere of diligence and desire among the subjects.

[2] Oysters also held an exotic connotation as many featured in Dutch paintings were from different continents, and they were used because they were seen as ancient souvenirs of the past.

[4] Oysters were a reminder of ancient times and symbolized Aphrodite, the goddess of love, fertility, pleasure, and sex throughout antiquity and all the way into Baroque art.

[4] Oysters typically appeared in mythological paintings where Aphrodite and Dionysus were the main deities depicted.

[4] Oyster meal paintings of the second time period were all set indoors and displayed some sort of a domestic interior.

[2] They expressed the Dutch whim for portraiture, love of the home and family, and for moralistic messages, all typically found in domestic settings.

[5] Genre paintings of his that show a love theme include subjects such as marriage, brothel scenes, and the treatment of lovesickness (The Physician's Visit).