RKD STUDIES

A1.72 - A1.80

... red at auction in 1797, 1819 and 1876.1 The supposed relation between the two portraits could be correct, considering their si...

... f the silky surface of the fabric, who interrupts delicate grey-in-grey passages with hard black contours. This is done with such a subtle grasp of nuances and at the same time with a determinate emphasis on single sharp accents, that none of Hals’s assistants could ever be held responsible for this clear and angular, yet semi-abstract representation.[7][8]The hands, which are depicted with only a few brushstrokes, can also be attributed to Hals himself, and the same applies for the bonnet and collar. In the end, the only question that remains open, is who has painted the face, which in some parts definitely differs from Hals’s style of painting. These differences become particularly clear when juxtaposing the portrait of Feyntje van Steenkiste to other female portraits by Hals, such as the Portrait of a woman, also dated 1635 (A1.78) [5] and the portrait possibly depicting Maria Larp, which probably dates from the same period (A1.79) [6] as well. Following the manner of execution in these two portraits, it becomes clear that in the face of Feyntje van Steenkiste, there are narrow islands in which Hals’s characteristic handwriting can be identified. These are the eyes, their sockets and the eyebrows, as well as the right hand side lower eyelid, the shadow of the nose and the right hand side nostril. Of the mouth, only the line between the lips has remained. The rest has been covered in a thick, light colored paint, thus becoming flat and rigid. The lower eyelid on the left has been painted over, as is the white of the eye on the right. The modelling of the corners of the mouth and the nasolabial folds have completely disappeared. Theoretically, these parts could also be the work that was delegated to a workshop assistant. Yet the patchy application and the underlying layers of paint that shimmer through, argument for a subsequent revision instead. I am not in the position to judge whether these additions can be removed or softened, but it would be nice to regain some of the original, more animated, facial expression of the sitter. ...

... s built up with strong flesh tones. Hals's psychological characterization could be based on the sitter's displeasure with the boring task of modelling. The reality of a painful posing, and possibly the underlying snobbery in the gaze on the painter opposite cannot be bettered. Overall, the paint surface is well preserved, there is only a slightly irritating filling on the shaded side of the nose bridge....

... h merely some thin locks placed on top.Recently, Marieke de Winkel drew attention to the clothing of the depicted child, identifying it as characteristic female dress: "... it is definitely a girl because she is wearing a rijglijf. The red shoulder straps over the shirt are a sure sign of that. According to estate i...

... s of Hals, with the present painting as its subject. Using five non-invasive investigation techniques, the canvas, ground and paint layer were analyzed. Interesting is the documentation of the various dimensions of the painting’s stretching: by 1767 – probably its original size – it was larger at the top, bottom and left hand side than it is today. It was reduced by 1786, and then again slightly enlarged on the lower and left edges, resulting in the currently visible picture plane. In their conclusion, the authors list the most striking results of their research into Hals’s choice of colors and pigments, and his technique, such as the ‘very sparse and loose initial sketch, efficient use of the ground color ...

A3.56 - A3.64

... arm of Joseph Coymans (*1591) in his portrait from 1644 (A1.111) [1], even though the pattern is more softly connected with the modelling there. in other words, the subject matter is the same, but in the present painting the pattern has become detached from the three-dimensional shape of the sleeve. The same effect can be observed in the comparison of the two areas of the gloves. In the present painting, everything has been rendered with a suggestive calligraphy of the brush. The result is further emphasized through the stripy pattern of the folds and the two-dimensional decoration of ornaments, which were probably contributed by another hand. Designed by Hals and painted by him in the areas of the face and hands, the picture shows a similar, yet harder style in the execution of the hair, the collar and the area of the chest and the arms, where the contou...

... 942.9.29This painting was altered in its format several time...

... red man, c. 1658...

... g of the face has recovered an original loose application of paint in shades of ochre and red. The clear facial expression and the determined gaze in this area suggest an execution...

... de Ruyter (1607-1676) were based on the ostentatious presentation of this expensively dressed gentleman and were already rejected in the 19th century through comparisons wi...

... vant – which are reduced to merely lighter and darker strokes of color – reveal a kind of angular abbreviation which may have been caused by a loss of strength in the over-80-years-old Hals, but at the same time is entirely in keeping with the master’s bold brushwork. This abbreviation appears spontaneous and therefore as if painted directly onto the canvas in front of the sitters. It was easier to do so for the figures placed on the edges of the composition, than for those positioned more towards the center of the large picture plane. The faces of the group on the right could have conceivably been created on the basis of intermediary separate facial studies that were afterwards included by Hals in the correct format. In this process, the face of the third figure from the right has come out slightly too large.On closer examination of the faces in this group, it is notable that some of the features have been reworked. Softly rubbed paint covers the corners of the mouths of all three sitters on the right, but also parts of the eyes, especially the shaded eye of the man seated in the center. There is also overpainting in the face of the sitter seated to his right. Thick, impasto paint is apparent in the corners of the mouth, along the ridge of the nose and to the side and over the eye of the sitter on the far right. In all these cases it seems as if accents that appeared to harsh have been concealed at a later stage in the creation process. This hypothesis is supported by the sudden disappearance of the craquelure in these areas, as is being covered by a cloud. The painting must have been completely dry at the moment of this intervention.13During one of the discussions of the advisory board for the restoration of the regents’ group portraits at the Frans Hals Museum, it was discussed that the heads and hands of the five regents all appear somewhat large in relationship to the size of their bodies. This is true; however, a similar impression is already noticeable in the early civic guard portraits. The three-dimensionally modelled heads and hands stand out brightly lit against the closely arranged figures of the bodies which appear flat in their darkly colored clothing. The relatively large hands of the two groups of regents – equally noticeable in the group portrait of the Regents of St Elisabeth’s Hospital of c. 1640-1641 (A1.102) – correspond to a close-up observation, where the painter is positioned directly in front of his sitter and perceives objects in proximity to himself as larger in proportion. In any case, the regents of the Old Men’s Almshouse are closer to the viewer than the regentesses, who were painted almost at the same time or a little later under Hals’s supervision (A3.63). The latter’s faces are about one fifth smaller. Another significant difference is created by the impression of the wide hats and the light and airy hairstyles. These enhance the visual appearance of the gentlemen, which would have been even more distinct in the original contrast against the formerly lighter background colors.It is difficult to date the present painting precisely, since the few other pictures from Hals’s final years can only be categorized as a sequence in very general terms. These are sometimes painted in unconnected color stripes and dots. The frequently adopted date of 1664 for the present painting is connected to the unusual circumstance that the impoverished painter Hals, who lived on handouts from the municipal authorities, was in a position to guarantee a credit of 458 guilders for his son-in-law in January 1665.14 Traditionally, a date of execution just before this date is therefore assumed. Nevertheless, the differences in execution between the present group portrait of the regents of the Old Men’s Almshouse and that of its regentesses, which is nearly identical in size, indicate a sequence in production of the two commissions. Since Hals’s own contribution is clearly discernible in the painting of the gentlemen, and only traces of it remain in that of the women’s, the present commission was most likely executed earlier....

... is likely to have been the one designed and executed first. Technical examination of the canvas, the ground and the paint layers has revealed many similarities with the companion piece. Accordingly, there is no doubt that Hals designed both of these outstanding commissions and was ultimately responsible for both.In the portrait of the regentesses, heads and hands were most likely outlined by the master himself. His characteristic grading of brightness levels is most discernible in the two heads and collars in the center of the composition. In their diagonal brushstrokes from top right to lower left these most clearly display the accents which are typical for Hals [14][15]. It is also worth noting the x-ray published by Groen and Hendriks, that indicates a shift in the position of the head of the second woman from the left, and already clearly displays the modelling of the facial features at a point ahead of the execution of the picture surface.21 Nevertheless, many areas of the picture plane show differences from the painterly technique in the group portrait of the regents, which is loose and at the same time more bold and consistent. The execution of all hands and collars, but especially the details of the brightly illuminated faces of the women seated on the right [16] and the left, display a linearity and two-dimensionality that clearly diverges from the painterly richness and tonality of the contemporary regents’ picture, as well as from other autograph portraits by Hals. There are noticeable insecurities in the anatomical treatment of the hands and cuffs, in the foreshortening and in the illumination, while the use of hard contours is similar to that already noticed in the two family portraits in London (A4.3.19) and Madrid (A4.3.24) as well as in several individual portraits from the 1640 and 1650s. While only visible under strong light, the deepening of the folds in the clothing by black contours is also different from the regents’ group portrait. The accents in the men’s picture are set with a rich, soft technique of brushwork that models and also structures the three gentlemen on the right in a rhythmical manner. In contrast, the light edges and shadows in the ladies’ clothes are marked in an abrupt and hard technique that is not confident in shaping [17]. It resembles the clothes of the men on the left side [18]. These differences in the ability of representation are discernible despite a matching technical process; therefore, they cannot be distinguished in technical photographs, but only through a comparison of the respective stylistic and creative approach. On the whole, the two group portraits together demonstrate an unmistakable fading of the bold painter’s powers of observation and representation. Hals’s design is increasingly reduced to the point of becoming mere hints which are hesitantly followed by the assistant, with a comparable broad brushstroke. In the regents’ picture, Hals’s unaccommodating bravura in emphasizing degrees of light and modelling nuances is clearly visible in parts, while in the regentesses’ portrait it only shines through the later supplementary execution.It is surprising that Hals received the commission for the present group portrait of the regentesses of the Old Men’s Almshouse, for two decades earlier he had not been chosen for depicting the regentesses of St Elisabeth’s Hospital. It had been Verspronck who received that commission in 1641. But the situation had changed since: Hals had survived the established portrait painters in Haarlem. Pieter Soutman had died in 1657; Verspronck was buried on June 30, 1662; Jacob van Loo (1614-1670) had fled to Paris from Amsterdam in 1660; and the much-acclaimed Jan de Braij (1626/1627-1697) was already occupied with the painting of the children of the Haarlem orphanage, and the group portraits of the regents and regentesses of this institution, which he would complete in 1663 and 1664.22 His greatly esteemed father Salomon de Bray (1597-1664) had lost his wife, probably in the plague epidemic of 1663, and died of the same disease a year later, together with four of Jan’s siblings. If the patrons wished to have their paintings completed in the not-too-distant future, they probably had no choice but to refer to the elderly Frans Hals....

... his loosely painted portrait depicts the fashionable performance of a wealthy gentleman in a curly wig and wearing a Japanese-style dressing gown called a ‘Japonsche rock’. The possession of such a precious garment was much sought-after for informal appearances, ever since the shoguns had presented thirty kimonos to their trading partners in the Dutch East India Company on the occasion of signing the annual renewal of the trade agreement. The Dutch soon had to meet a demand from far beyond their own borders, which kept tailors busy, both in the East and at home.23 Those who found a ‘Japonsche rock’ to expensive could rent an ‘Indian gowne’, as the famous diarist Samuel Pepys (1633-1703) did for his portrait of 1666 by John Hayls (†1679).24 In this dressing gown, Pepys appeared seemingly informal and private; ostensibly turning towards a visitor entering unexpectedly in a relaxed manner. At the same time, his exotic outfit signaled his elevated status....

A1.13 - A1.23

... c guard, that is 1627 (A2.8A). The wedding clothes could also have been used at this later stage. In this case, the double portrait would be a symbolical marriage portrait five years after the wedding, and the conceited pose of the present gentleman's portrait in a feigned oval would have been painted in the year of the wedding, 1622.As part of the preparations for the Frans Hals exhibition in 2023/2024, infrared and X-ray images of the present painting were taken, revealing the presence of the emblematic figures of Envy and Death behind the sitter – overpainted at an unknown date. The fact that Massa's particular achievement was overcoming the hostility of envious people is expressed in the text under Massa’s portrait engraving of 1635 (C27) – which reads ‘Pursued by hatred and envy, he obtained honour from the Tsar and the Swedish king’.4 The sitter’s pose with folded arms can be interpreted as ‘one of defiance in the face of those he perceived as his enemies.5...

... ntext, we can refer to Slive's analysis of the vanity painting of Johannes Torrentius (1588-1644) painted in 1614 [1]. On a sheet of music below the wine glass we read ‘that which is immoderate has an excessively bad fate’.8 A moderate amount poured into the small drinking glass is therefore demanded by temperance and an individual's personal harmony. The chalk marks on the panel in the background of Young woman holding a glass and a flagon, keeping tally of the number of glasses ordered refer to the need for temperance as well. Harmony could also be suggested by the violin hanging from the back wall. As a symbol of vanity, it points to the fading of enchanting sounds. With her smile, the youthful pourer in the tavern herself embodies the swift passing of emotional experiences. This being said, Hals’s painting goes beyond mere moral instruction. The up-close and spontaneous human face is the center of attention. The woman’s half-smile expressing shyness and approachability ...

... non. There are several examples of the Utrecht painters’ strong lighting and sculptural modelling of similar moving half-length figures from the period between 1621 and 1623. The model of the Lute player also appears in a very similar facial study, the painting of the so-called Jonker Ramp, dated 1623 [3]. The slanting light and the view from below already feature there. However, the composition of the Lute player and the emphasis on the volume of head and hands are closer to the models from the Utrecht paintings.The workshop-copy in the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, which was long considered to be an original work by Frans Hals himself, is listed in catalogue part B (B4)....

... portion of the nose, and last, not least the vertical crease above the nasal root. Roosterman's bushy brows are angular in shape, as opposed to the straight line of those of the sitter in the Wallace portrait. Overall, The laughing cavalier’s hair is lighter and thinner than Roosterman’s, and last but not least, the color of the eyes differ: blue to grey-blue in the present painting and greenish brown in Roosterman's portrait in Cleveland.Research by Marieke de Winkel takes a completely different approach in trying to identify the sitter. In 1770 the painting was sold by the Van Heemskerck family, specifically by a descendant of the poet Johan van Heemskerck (1597-1656). The latter was born in 1597 and therefore had the same age as The laughing cavalier. Both shared a penchant for extravagant clothing, as is demonstrated by the Portrait of Johan van Heemskerck of 1628 which also shows him in a jacket with colorful embroidery and slashing.13 The most famous work by Van Heemskerck is the Pub. Ovidii Nasonis Minne-kunst […], which was based on Ovid’s Ars amatoria.14 De Winkel states: ‘The cavalier by Hals must have been intimately familiar with the text of Heemskerck’s Minne-kunst, since all the emblems (on his costume, ed.) reflect the text literally. For instance, the central motif of the caduceus with flames [...] stands for Heemskerck’s central belief that eloquence was the main weapon in the art of love. [...] In fact all emblems on the sleeve relating to love can be found in the book’.15This portrait with its rich content under...

... ier (A1.16). The composition has been altered by removing the wide-brimmed hat and b...

... ecution of the many filigree details. Unfortunately, the facial part was subsequently smoothed out, similar to what can be observed in the pendant. A slightly brownish tone now distinguishes the skin of the face from that of the hands – the latter having been preserved in their original condition. However, the observation of the increasing and decreasing brightness in the modelling of the hands and the clothing, and their translation into graduated strokes and patches of color can be followed here in an exemplary manner. A juxtaposition with similarly composed depictions by contemporary colleagues [5][6], shows Hals's sensitivity, paired with the sketchy lightness of his paint application. Hals’s Portrait of Jacob Pietersz. Olycan may have served as a source of inspiration for the 1632 Portrait of a man, by the Amsterdam painter Nicolaes Eliasz. Pickenoy (1588-1650).18...

... he edge of the chin is scuffed, as is the facial contour on the left side, which is unconvincingly overlapped by the light grey of the bonnet – especially at the level of the eyes. From the root of the nose down to the chin, the facial features have been robbed of the accents that otherwise suggest the delicate movement of facial expression. This loss is contrasted by the breath-taking lightness of the well-preserved depiction of the hands, cuffs, gloves and embroidery of the bodice, as well as the delicate portrayal of the lace. Hals's incredible skill in capturing these intricate forms, soft fabrics and threads becomes ever so clear when compared with similar motifs in the Portrait of Johanna Le Maire, painted by Nicolaes Eliasz. Pickenoy (1588-1650) in about the same period [7]....

... Royal Academy of 1902.26 Valentiner and the 1935 Detroit exhibition catalogue list the size as identical, while Slive lists it as 121 x 95.8 cm, in accordance with recent information from the museum.27 Such a considerable difference in width can only be explained by a folded canvas edge that was once again included in the picture surface, with the canvas on a larger stretcher. However, this raises the question of which format the ‘old frame’ had that Slive mentions and that was marked with the monogram ‘CHRG’.28 This can only have been the frame at the time of purchase by Taft, in the already reduced format. The larger size that was recovered through restoration in the meantime would exclude this frame as an original one for the present painting. It was probably used when the painting’s size was reduced, if the picture was not cut down in the first place to fit the smaller frame. The changes of dimensions have caused a notable shift in the composition. The sitter is placed distinctly to the left of the center, leaving an unusual amount of space on the right towards the pendant. This impression is enhanced by the strip measuring about 4,5 cm in width, which runs along the right hand edge of the painting and differs in color with its grey overpainting. In some places, the original background shade can be seen through the overpainting, indicating that the strip of canvas is in fact original. The same color of overpainting is also visible along the other painting edges. Smoothing retouches carried out in the face, on the collar, at the upper edge of the left cuff and on both hands were probab...

... xecution of the face, but also of parts of the dress, would fall into the period before Hals introduced a lighter palette and enhanced modelling, as is visible in the oeuvre of 1626 onwards (see A1.24, A1.25, A1.26).In addition, the identity of Van Baersdorp is further supported by the French provenance of the painting. After the joint sale in 1825, De Wael’s portrait passed into the collection of Charles Pillet (1869-1960) in Paris, and from there to the English trade, while Van Baersdorp’s portrait turned up in the French art trade in 1899. However, by then, there was a conspicuous difference: instead of the original 117.5 x 75 cm, the painting now measured 116 x 91 cm, and the canvas was laid down on panel. A broadening by 16 cm was not due to an added piece, but obviously to the inclusion of the preserved canvas that was folded back over the stretcher. The restoration of the female portrait’s original size somewhere between 1825 and 1899 anticipated the much later reconstruction of the male portrait. The original, and today relined, canvas has cusping on all four sides, with irregularly cut edges. Only narrow strips would have been lost. An examination of the present canvas at the restorer’s workshop also revealed rows of earlier nail holes.34 An initial inspection of the distance between the assumed pa...

A1.59 - A1.71

... ied in accordance with family tradition as Nicolaes Hasselaer (1593-1635) and his second wife, Sara Wolphaerts van Diemen (1594-1667). After mix-ups and doubts about this identification, the...

... Sara Wolphaerts van Diemen, c. 1634...

... ording to the now confirmed identification of the male portrait, she is Sara Wolphaerts van Diemen (1594-1667), who became Hasselaer’s second wi...

... the shape of the armchair have become indistinct through darkening of the pigments. The expression in the eyes is also marred by paint losses. Apart from these weaknesses in condition, the portrait displays areas of superb painting. A stripy app...

... m soon after birth seems likely. Accordingly, she must have been 25 in 1634, even though the inscription gives her age as 22.Catherina Brugman is sumptuously dressed, with a double collar and gloves abundantly covered in lace. She looks pregnant in the picture; between 1633 and 1652 she gave birth to nine children....

... onThe shape of this painting’s canvas altered form an originally rectangular format ...

... to as ‘Cath: Vulp huisvrouw van mons: Mers’ (Cath. Vulp, wife of Mr Mers). The paint surface has suffered through abrasion. The gesture of the joined hands suggests female humility and prudence; it is a re...

A1.81 – A1.90

... man holding a skull (A1.29). Hals follows the model of the Utrecht school, such as is visible in the Young man wearing a burgundy jacket and beret by Jan van Bijlert (c. 1597/98-1671).1Today’s appearance of the present picture – originally diamond shaped – was recovered in the course of several restorations and examinations since 1981. Before, the collar had been changed and the hand had become invisible through overpainting. A copy of the overpainted state was formerly in the Epstein collection in Baltimore and later with Newho...

... chant Willem van Heythuysen (1585-1650) (A2.6) from a decade earlier. In the present picture, the expensively dressed gentleman is moved even closer towards the viewer. We can imagine Frans Hals sitting at his easel, loo...

... ght arm is stretched towards the viewer, with the hand holding the knob of the baton. This position is displayed frontally in the left hand foreground of Meeting of the officers and sergeants of the Calivermen civic guard of 1632/1633 (A2.10) [1]. With a slight sideways turn of the body, it appears in the Portrait of Pieter van den Broecke of 1633 (A1.58) and similarly dashing is the slightly older officer in the present picture. He wears a fine lace collar and expensively embroidered doublet, but conveys his military function through his hat which resists wind and weather, and his gorget. The change in observation becomes clear in the different levels of attention given to the element of movement. The present picture no longer displays the accentuated sculptural shapes and the emphasis on spatial movement of the two earlier examples. It is distinctly softer, reinterpreted as a sequence of color lines within a painterly harmony of color fields. Individual ar...

... much graciousness. In comparison with the earlier representative portraits of men of rank, the movement is reduced and just subtle here. The painterly execution displays a reduced coloring and striking smoothness....

... and at the same time appealing, abstract manner [3]. The modelling of hand and glove is equally simple and confident as in the male pendant. Overall, Hals’s sober physiognomic capture is nevertheless more suited to the disposition of the gentleman than to that of the lady, who is not much flattered....

... ’s distinctive head, with a good-natured smile and the emphasis on laughte...

... is listed by Hofstede de Groot. Under nos. 240 and 241, he records a pair of pictures sold at auction in Amsterdam in 1850 and 1851, depicting Jan de Wael (1594-1663) and his wife Aeltgen Dircksdr. Pater, both measuring 73 x 54 cm, painted on panel.12De Winkel associated the hitherto unidentified Portrait of a man (A1.101) as the companion piece of the present portrait. However, when Verspronck’s 1653 Portrait of Johan de Wael appeared – most recently with Agnew’s in London – it became clear that the men’s likenesses do not correspond.13...

... is eyebrows raised. The coloring is muted and entirely focused on the face. In a subtle lighting, the much emphasized plasticity of previous years has been reduced. In its pose, lighting and psychological approach the present picture strongly resembles the Portrait of a man in Frankfurt, equally in an oval shap...

... s so often the case with Hals’s female portraits, the expensively dressed sitter makes a reserved appearance, with her eyes turned t...

A1.35 - A1.44

... erin pair have been created throughout the centuries, differing in size and format. As Slive put it, ‘most of them are poor caricatures of the original’.5 The Laughing boy with a flute was copied and repeated even more frequently than its pendant.6In both paintings, the diagonal grain of the panel is visible through the semi-opaque paint layers of the shaded and background areas. Hals and his workshop repeatedly used the support in this way for their genre paintings.7 Semi-opaque paint layers can be observed clearly in the shaded passages in the faces, next to the opaquely colored areas in the highlighted parts. At the transition between light and shade, for example along the nose and cheeks, Hals has added sweeping strokes with a dry brush....

... als. According to the exhibition catalogue The Return of St Luke. West-European paintings of the 16th -18th centuries from Ukrainian museums, Hals’s evangelist pictures had hung in a church in Odessa until they were lost during the turmoil of the October revolution and the civil war.11 Shortly before the outbreak of World War II, a curator from the Museum of Western and Oriental Art in Odessa is said to have discovered the pictures of St Luke and St Matthew at a flea market and purchased them cheaply for the museum. The paintings had been in storage there until Irina Linnik identified them as works by Hals in 1959.12 In 1964, the painting of St Luke was lent to an exhibition in Moscow, from where it was stolen. The police recovered it the same year from a gang of burglars, together with other artworks. A 1971 Russian crime film, The Return of St Luke, describes the story of the theft....

... trecht painters, especially by Hendrick ter Brugghen (1588-1629). This being said, Ter Brugghen’s 1621 evangelists in the town hall of Deventer still are semi-nude elderly men, noble hermits dressed in the antique style, removed from everyday life through highly dramatic lighting.13 In contrast, Hals’s figures have been stripped of all antique connotations, they could just have e...

... ibuted the painting to Frans Hals. After Severi had subsequently sent letters with photographs to all institutions and scholars worldwide who were concerned with Frans Hals, but met with no interest, he offered the portrait for sale in London in 1972, but was equally unsuccessful.16 The author of the present publication saw the illustration in the sale catalogue and convinced the owner to have the painting’s pa...

... s of the biblical message to change the world were three coarse old men and one attentive boy looking up, with equally trivial background figures, almost rough mock-ups.While the areas of faces and hands in the depictions of St John and St Mark were soiled when they were recovered, their original coloring and brushwork has become mostly visible again through cleaning and restoration. In comparison to the two other evangelists, St. Luke and St Matthew, they stand out against the latter’s substantial overpainting, particularly in the faces and hands. A...

... th by Gerard van Honthorst (1592-1656) and dated 1625.26 If my assumption is correct, that Frans Hals has seen Honthorst’s 1625 depiction of Granida and Daifilo in the latter’s workshop, he probably must have also seen these two paintings there, using them as sources of inspiration for his own work.27 A merry prostitute dressed in a similar outfit as Hals’s, is frequently depicted in the center of tavern scenes by Haarlem genre painter Jan Miense Molenaer (c. 1609/1610-1668).28Unlike in Hals's earlier depictions of merry couples (A3.1, A3.2, A3.3), there is no sense of spirited exuberance or even of an uninhibited party mood or sug...

... ture by the use of a feigned oval frame and the sitter's formal pose. He referred to similar small portraits of family members in the context of Jan Miense Molen...

A1.1 - A1.12

... crudely executed parts are not done by Hals.It is difficult to place the Zaffius-portrait stylistically within Hals's artistic development, as this can be traced only in a few works. The nearest dated paintings by Hals are a portrait of 1614 (A1.2) – with a badly abraded surface – and the ones in Birmingham and Chatsworth that probably date from c. 1616 and which display a recognizable Flemish influence (A1.4, A1.5). The date of 1611 on the present painting is certainly plausible, since dendrochronological examinations have established a possible felling date between 1602 and 1608 for the wood of the panel.4 As far as we can infer from the 1630 engraving, the lost larger portrait of Zaffius was probably a very early work by Hals himself as well. The wide-angled perspective and the rhetorical composition with the skull would only fit into the period before his journey to Antwerp in 1616 and before he came into contact with Flemish painting. It is therefore also unlikely to assume an addition which was only conceived by 1630, that would have served as the modello for the engraving. Especially the conclusive use of the skull and the coat of arms would speak against it. It is therefore also conceivable that Hals' model for the engraving was created at the same time as the present painted portrait, maybe not in a large format, but sufficient enough for the engraving. Everything considered, the Zaffius-portrait is a technically well preserved and artistically clear and impressive example from Frans Hals's early career, when he was still influenced by late Mannerism....

... eing lit from the side. The three-dimensional modelling of the figure probably appeared more pronounced, before the halftones sank into the background due to discoloring of the pigments. The upper body that moves out of the oval frame is captured in a wide-angle view. The face and hands are modelled by exaggerated lighting; the hand in front is much lighter than the one holding the rim of a hat inside the frame. The medallion in the sitter's hand depicts a bust portrait of a y...

... supports. Groen and Hendriks published photographs of the unusual curving grain of the panels, which must have been cut ‘back to back’ from the same piece of timber and were probably delivered to Hals’s workshop at the same time.9 Even though the female portrait is more colorful, and the male portrait appears more ‘modern’ than the Portrait of Pieter Cornelisz. van der Morsch ...

... also conceivable that the visit to Antwerp increased the impression that Flemish art had already had on Hals.A light coloring of the flesh tones and highlighting with yellow and red shades are noticeable in the present painting, in which the face and parts of the hands glow like the amber-colored paint glazes in Rubens’s portraits. Heads and hands emerge as equally radiant three-dimensional shapes, while the compactness of the body is emphasized to a lesser extent....

... , even though they are equally far removed from the original state of the portrait, and the currently visible remnants of the collar do no longer define its form. Finally, smoothing overpainting is also discernible, especially in the elegantly designed hand that is holding a hat. During the last restoration overpainting in the hair was also removed, and a ring on the man’s hand was revealed.It is possible that this portrait was conceived with a no longer extant pendant, or perhaps even as a sequence of family portraits. However, this remains speculative as the documentation is scarce. The canvas was trimmed on all four sides, so that the original composition and size cannot be established. The coat of arms in the upper right hand corner is seen at an angle, similar to those in Portrait of a woman (A2.0) and Portrait of Paulus van Beresteyn (A2.1), suggesting an indistinct spatial depth. The left field of the coat of arms probably refers to the Van Alckemade family, whose members were councilors in Haarlem in the 17th century.12 The inscription on the right below the coat of arms was reworked several times and has become partly illegible. The date 1619 is, however, credible. The features of the sitter bear a resemblance to the Portrait of a man with a lute painted around the same time, who may be identified as Cornelis Adriaensz. Gael (c. 1589-1672) (A4.1.1)....

... am Suhr, who worked at the Frick Collection in New York until 1970, had examined this painting for the first time. He assumed – on the basis of individual sections of overpainting – that the area of the head as it is visible today, must have been glued onto the canvas.14 However, only individual losses in the face and background have been filled by insertions of pieces of canvas. The overall composition and the execution of all preserved original details are characteristic for Frans Hals himself. Yet, the surface of the bust and arms of the woman’s costly dress have suffered severely from abrasion. The original coloring and the pattern of the embroidery are still recognizable on the right arm, and remnants of it on the left arm and the torso. Both in 2017 as well as in 2021-2022 all later additions have been taken off and the remaining original condition was documented with technical photographs. The remains of the face and the lace bonnet have been elaborated on with a free reconstruction. The overall composition, which has been largely preserved in its original format, suggests that the portrait was desig...

... and impulsive movement.In contrast to the very well preserved female counterpart, the head and collar of the male sitter are covered in smoothing overpainting. The surface of the skin, including the ears, has been affected by this as well. The hair, which in Hals’s portraits is usually loosely applied, especially in the moustaches and beards, is unpleasantly blurred here. The complex layers of the collar appear flattened in the present condition. The later intervention may also have caused the distinct cupping in the paint surface. This unusual breaking up of the painted surface affects the face and left hand, while the right hand seems undamaged. An equally thorough, yet sensitive restoration would be desirable for this ...

D43 - D56

... portrait in Cincinnati [2] shows the originally detailed structure and drapery of the dress, which today only appears as a flat black surface in the painting....

... ETATIS 53. ANNO 1642’. Furthermore, the remnants of an inscription at the bottom of the drawing exactly match the text on the print, and the same cartouche is featured as well. On the paper’s verso there is a note: ‘door J. Stolker naar het Seltzamen orrigineel berustende in de Bibliotheek der Remonstrantsche kerke te Amsterda...

... e hand of Hals himself, this chalk drawing is now considered to be an 18th-century copy after the same painting th...

A3.19 - A3.29

... rtunately, no pigment samples were taken from the overpainting in Olycan's portrait of 1634-1635 (A3.25), which has been successfully removed during treatment by Martin Bijl. This would have made a comparison with the pigments of the portraits of Van der Meer and Vooght possible.In the present picture, the collar area is of lesser quality; it is applied more coarsely and less accurately than in corresponding examples from Hals’ other works from this period, for instance the collar of the Portrait of an elderly man in the Frick Collection (A1.41). The collar in the Portrait of Pieter Jacobsz. Olycan (A3.25) is also more confidently captured in the foreshortened side edges [2][3].4 The collar was probably painted by an assistant of Hals, whose viscous application of paint is also apparent in the creamy overpainting of the fingers, the accents on the fingernails, the strengthened contours of the cuffs as well as the lion’s head on the back of the chair. In contrast, Hals’s brushwork is still visible in the soft contours of the brushstroke around the finger joints, especially in the left hand.As is the case in a number of Hals's portraits (A1.65) - especially several portraits from the Olycan family (A1.17, A1.18, A1.93 and A1.94) – the coats of arms in the portraits of V...

... y documented in mediocre black-and-white illustrations. In 1928, Valentiner published it in his article ‘Rediscovered paintings by Frans Hals’ and some years later he included it in his exhibition of 50 Frans H...

... resent picture to be the original model for all other versions. The areas of the head and hands display Hals’s soft and confidently accentuated brushwork. The body and the background were most likely executed by an assistant on the basis of Hals’s preparatory drawing, which is visible at close range as contours. Dark contour lines are recognizable along the floorboards, the frame, and the curtain in the background, as well as on the outline of the figure and the seam of the tablecloth. In contrast, work by an assistant is indicated in the mechanical execution of the small buttons, the hard folds of the coat and the top boot on the outstretched foot. This also applies to the angular folds of the gathered curtain on the right and the stiff fringe on the chair. The juxtaposition of such traces of execution and of pentimenti such as the correction of the hat, illustrates the process of creation. They reinforce the impression that the present picture was painted in a collaboration between the master and an assistant.Stylistically, the painting can be dated to 1634-1635. Martin Bijl observed that the panels used for paintings in Haarlem were sawn by hand until c. 1634. Afterwards, they consistently show the marks from a sawmill. This is already the case for the workshop replica in private ownership (A3.23), while the present picture still shows marks of the hand saw.13The inventory drawn up after Heyt...

... e inscription on the back commemorates Heythuysen’s personal achievements: ‘Willem van Heythuyzen, Protestant left Flanders on account of his Religion & brought over with him 28 Families into Holland some of which afterwards settled in England’. The fact that the picture first appeared in an 1893 London sale, suggests the possibility that Van Heythuysen ordered it himself for his contacts in England.15...

... emarkable.21 This copy could well date from the period of Hals’s rediscovery at the time, which would be consistent with the canva...

... ave been painted by Hals himself.25 It is not known who was responsible for the new design of the hand and coat areas in such an uninspired manner, but it must have probably been done during the 17th century, since the watercolor copy by Wybrand Hendriks (1744-1831) already shows the state of the painting in which it is still visible today (D24).In today’s condition, the painting shows in part the confident brushwork of Hals – in the shadowed side of the forehead, and in the contouring of the eyes, nose, and mouth – but predominantly, it displays a smoother and softer handling. This includes smoothing overpainting in the area of the head, such as on the ear, the eyelids, the nose, the cheeks, and the lip. Hals’s brushwork was also later attenuated in the hair on the head and in the moustache. A further phenomenon is the strengthening of the whitening of the hair of the head and the beard which emerged in this early Olycan portrait over the course of several reworkings and restorations. The thinly applied brown and grey tones were partly d...

... rstanding expression of the woman fits quite well as a complement to the somewhat stilted appearance of the man.When studied up close, the woman’s hands, pearl necklace, cuffs, and the overall dress, including the collar and lace cap, appear to have been painted by an experienced workshop assistant. Only a few touches of revision by the master can be discerned. The surface of the fac...

... himself. The brightest parts of the portrait are the faces and hands, which, however, vary in quality. The faces of both parents were probably based on individual studies by Hals and executed by him for the most part, while the clothing including collars, all hands and the children’s faces are executed by a weaker hand – or even by two weaker hands. The very ‘Halsian’ design of the well-proportioned parents’ figures is remarkable and contrasts with the clumsy hard lines of light and shadow on the children’s clothing. Illuminated areas and folds in the shadows of the parents’ clothing are, however, more even in their brushwork. It seems reasonable to assume that preparatory drawings or paintings created after life as ‘snapshots’ were available for these areas, including the faces and hands, and were subsequently copied in proportion into the painting.On the right-hand side of the composition a view towards a manor house and a church tower are visible, which have not yet been identified. The slightly abraded paint surface in this area also makes it harder to identify the painter’s hand. Just like other backgrounds in Hals’s works, the brushwork clearly differs from his own. However, the depiction of the trees and the foliage in the typical finger-like shapes corresponds to the style of Pieter de Molijn (1595-1661). It is interesting to note that infrared-reflectography found an underdrawing of the background, probably done in black chalk. However, in the absence of matching comparisons, this does not provide enough information about the exact sequence of steps in the working process, and even less about those involved in the execution....

1.15 A presumably more expensive commission

... er Michiel Jansz. van Middelhoven (1562-1638) [208] and his wife Sara Andriesdr. Hessix [209]. The most likely occasion would be t...

... g and engraving. Could Jonas Suyderhoef (1614-1686) have created the surviving copper engraving on the basis of the picture from 1639 – or would he have needed another modello created by Hals?If we put enlarged details from the engraving and the painting side by side, the facial features and hands in the engraving show such a closely related manner of execution that several conclusions come to mind [214] [215] [216][217]. If the modello for the engraving was executed by an assistant, Hals must have prepared the templates for face and hands. As in the portrait of Jacobus Revius (1586-1658) (C47), a relatively large head seems to have been attached to a narrower body. This montage error can probably be attributed to the workshop. Yet neither Hals nor Suyderhoef intervened. Looking at the decoration and the folds of the dress of Judith van Breda [218], we find the somewhat mechanical work of an assistant – note the flatly applied pattern – which is still rich in detail. The same probably applies to the surface of the dark clothing of Swalmius. In any case, the engraving does show such a detailed execution [219]. In contrast, there are no matching visible traces left in the painting today [220]. The close similarity in other aspects leads to the inevitable conclusion that the delicate grey highlights have lost their opacity and that the thin, fine, brushstrokes on the surface were simply abraded or cleaned off. The same effect can be observed in the curls of the white beard which were actually also rubbed and shortened because of this. ...

... presented clothing than the much more coherently executed engraving. Indeed, it is possible to create the painting on the basis of the engraving, but not vice versa. Moreover, the transformation of the clothing into an abstract pattern of fields in varying shades of grey, as can be seen in the Portrait of Jean de la Chambre (A1.87), is entirely absent. Nothing can be seen of Hals’s dynamic brushwork in Ampzing’s facial area either [226]. Details like the anatomy of the ear and hand are rendered awkwardly. The manner of painting with its many short strokes differs fundamentally from the style in portraits that are securely attributed to Hals. It lacks the clarity of a characterization laid out in economical brushstrokes as can be seen in the Portrait of Jean de la Chambre [227]. The simplicity and precision of the shape of the eyes, nose, mouth, and ear of the latter differ in their essence from the hesitant descriptive brushwork in the Ampzing portrait. This tentative manner of...

... tricken face of the Ausonian bishop’. and ‘Why, devoted congregation, do you seek to have your Herald pictured on copper? The wounded faces of so many men will bear witness to him’.65 These lines refer to the polemics of the combative Calvinist Ampzing, which were expressed particularly in his controversial theological pamphlets.Ampzing was a preacher at Haarlem’s main church of St Bavo. Its parish councilors were responsible for the commission of the engraving, an intention they had probably already pursued when ordering a portrait modello from Frans Hals. It is hard to understand why almost a decade later an engraving of nearly twice the size was commissioned from Jonas Suyderhoef. The inscription under this print is written in Dutch and suggest that the city council of Haarlem probably arranged for this ambitious second edition: ‘O Haarlem, look upon Ampzing’s appearance,Which his city gives us that we may know him:A shepherd true to the church of God,And proficient in the Lord’s work,Whose edifying verses and poetry uplift the pious with their deep gravity;Rightly is he beloved of all Haarlem’s children and of the Lord’s people’.66The painted likeness of Ampzing was painted on copper and therefore forms a durable repetition of the several preparatory drawings and colored sketches on paper that must have been created by Frans Hals. This way of portrait-making was obviously cheaper, as assistants could execute a painting on the same occasion as the engraving was being made, painting a sort of ricordo of the already existing modelli on paper. Copper plates were available time and again in print workshops, after they had been used for printing several times and finally flattened down. While the printed engraving was distributed far and wide, patrons could retain the painted picture as a keepsake. And since the main objective was the representation of the sitter, and the executing painter was secondary, a painting executed by an assistant from the workshop was no sacrilege. Compared to the sketchy designs on cheap material or a portrait on oil-soaked paper covered in pinpoint holes and worn through use, such a portrait was a worthy representation....

... at of the picture. A comparison between the engravings and the execution in oil paint results in an unequivocal sequence: it is possible to create the painted version [241] as a simplified and imprecise variant on the basis of Matham’s engraving [242]. But vice versa, it is impossible to generate a coherent presentation of shapes, their surfaces, and lighting. The outcome of making an engraving after the extant painted modello can be seen in Suyderhoef’s engraving [243].The conclusion we can draw upon these observations, is that Frans Hals created a painted portrait-modello for Jacob Matham’s engraving, whose coloring was probably close to the painting by Pieter de Grebber. When Schrevelius or friends of his were planning another edition of engravings with his portrait by the 1640s, Hals’s original modello was no longer available. It may have been executed on paper or consisted of several individual studies which were not meant to be preserved. However, a same size version in oil had been executed on copper – the majority of small pictures from the Hals workshop was on this support – as a ricordo. This workshop product was less precise than the print by Matham. Once he passed away in 1631 and Jonas Suyderhoef had successfully created some portrait engravings for Hals from 1637 onwards, the latter was also tasked with producing the second run of Schrevelius-engravings. As a modello, there seems to have existed only the small painting on copper, but with freshly reworked details such as the highlights on the nose – identified by restorer Martin Bijl as squashed, not yet dry paint.69 These reworkings were applied to the mischievous-mocking facial expression with the gaze turned towards the viewer, which do not appear in Matham’s 1618. It is impossible to say who executed them, but in any case, Hals’s brushstroke is not apparent. These original additions are unfortunately not preserved and fell victim to later cleanings and reworkings. Nevertheless, Suyderhoef’s engraving has captured them....