"Seventeenth-century Dutch paintings were often made for a newly wealthy middle class and were of a size, subject, and scale appropriate to their homes. Predominantly Protestant and ruled by an oligarchy rather than the monarchy prevalent elsewhere, The Netherlands stood apart from much of the rest of contemporary Europe.". "From early on, Americans have felt an affinity for seventeenth-century Dutch painting, perhaps because it reflects their own ideals and social structures: a shared belief in democracy, religious freedom, and prosperity; the rise of the middle class, and a Protestant work ethic. Tradition has it that American notions of national pride and nostalgia, particularly during the nineteenth century with its increasing urbanization, responded to the domestic scale, humble subject matter, and naturalistic style of works by the Dutch." "The Poetry of Everyday Life features sixty such paintings from Boston private collections."--BOOK JACKET.