Children playing at soldiers outside a baker's shop

A pupil of David Teniers II, Van Tilborgh is recorded as initially having studied under his father; he subsequently moved to Brussels, where in 1654 he became a member of the painters' guild. His earlier work consists mostly of genre scenes of peasant life, such as kermesse and tavern scenes, in the manner of his master and of Joos van Craesbeeck, and group portraits of Flemish burghers, similar to those of Gonzales Coques. After June 1666, when he was appointed keeper of the picture collection in Tervuren Castle, near Brussels, he specialised in painting kunstkammer interiors.