Portret van Jan Baertsen

About this artwork

De identificatie van het model zijnde Jan Baertsen, de schoonvader van Goltzius, was reeds vastgesteld voordat het portret in de Ploos van Amstel Collectie werd opgenomen. Dit is bevestigd door de gelijkenis met het portret van hetzelfde model, in Museum Boymans-van Beuningen, van welk de rand inscriptie van het recto uit de zelfde tijd is. Echter, de vergelijking bevestigd niet de autenticiteit van onze tekening, waaraan Langerhuizen schijnt te twijfelen.

Art Historical Context

This delicate portrait by Hendrick Goltzius captures Jan Baertsen, the artist’s father-in-law, in a remarkably intimate format. Created between 1587 and 1591 on prepared paper, the drawing measures only 74 millimeters square, suggesting it was intended as a personal keepsake rather than a formal commission. Goltzius, one of the most celebrated Dutch draftsmen and engravers of the late sixteenth century, often explored such small-scale works alongside his larger prints and paintings. The identification of the sitter rests on its close resemblance to another portrait of Baertsen now in the Muse...

About the Artist

Hendrick Goltzius · 1558–1617

Hendrick Goltzius (1558–1617) was the most celebrated engraver of the Northern Renaissance and a pivotal figure in Dutch Mannerism. Born near the German-Dutch border, Goltzius transformed printmaking into a virtuoso art form through his revolutionary 'swelling line' technique, where the burin was manipulated to create lines of varying thickness that produced unprecedented tonal effects and three-d...