Hals’s private character — or a misunderstanding about it — additionally had one thing to do along with his wavering repute over the centuries, mentioned Friso Lammertse, the present’s Rijksmueum co-curator.
One of many central 18th-century artwork critics, Arnold Houbraken, asserted that Hals was “a riotous drunk,” who spent most of his life within the pub, which is why so lots of his portraits characteristic folks clanking tankards or wanting inebriated.
“One modern known as him ‘lustig,’” Lammertse defined, a Dutch phrase that may imply “lusty,” or merely “merry.” “For a very long time it’s been trendy to emphasize the moralism of Dutch portray — however that has nothing to do with Hals.”
The truth is, little or no is understood about Hals, the particular person, Lammertse mentioned. Even the date of his start, a while round 1582-84, stays a thriller. It’s identified that he married twice, first to Anneke Harmensdochter, who died in 1615, and later, to Lysbeth Reyniers. He had at the very least 14 kids, 11 of them with Lysbeth. He died, in his 80s, in 1666.
What is evident is that he spent nearly his whole life in Haarlem, the place he recorded the native inhabitants by means of 160 to 220 portraits, relying on which biographer you comply with. He by no means painted landscapes, nonetheless lifes or home scenes, so far as we all know — solely his portraits survive.
The overwhelming majority of his works have been commissioned by his sitters, often burghers or retailers, married {couples}, or teams like civic militias or provincial leaders. However about 20 % of his portraits weren’t commissioned: He merely selected to depict attention-grabbing folks from his environment.
