16th
century
Oil on panel
Netherlandish
Portrait of a man aged 42
Key, Adriaen Thomasz (1544-90)
The simple and rather severe approach seen in this picture shows a new fashion in portraiture in the later sixteenth century with its complete lack of ostentation and even in the absence of symbols indicating the sitter’s status. The date of 1575 is of some significance in reconstructing the artist’s career.
