Johan le Ducq

Commissioned by the family Loth, directly from the artist;
Their grandchild, married to François Hoyer, Amsterdam;
His grandchild, Hendrik David M(e)ispelblom Beyer, Haarlem, by 1907 (all of the above according to a label on the reverse);
Thence by descent.

The actual painting is slightly warmer in tone than the catalogue illustration suggests. The canvas has an old relining (glue), and is a bit wobbly in the upper corners. The paint surface seems to be in good condition. A few small repaired and retouched damages are visible in the clouds centre left, along the upper edge, along the right edge, and along the left edge. A few retouched paint losses are visible in the upper right, and a thin vertical surface scratch of approx. 20 cm. is visible in the centre left, as can be observed on the catalogue illustration. A few tiny discoloured retouchings can be observed in the figures overall. The paint surface is under a thick layer of dirt and covered with a discoloured layer of varnish. The craquelure pattern is rather coarse. Inspection under ultra violet light, furthermore, reveals additional retouchings along the edges, in the foliage and statue, tiny ones in the man and woman's faces, and a slightly larger area of retouching in the lower centre left. Offered in a decorative gilt wood frame, a few chips. (ML/MW)
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Painted in 1660, the year the artist joined the Confrerie Pictura in The Hague, such large family portraits are rare in the oeuvre of Le Ducq, who was predominantly an animal painter specialising in dogs. He was one of the co-founders of the Confrerie Pictura in 1656, but officialy registered four years later.¹ His few known portraits show the clear influence of Jan Mijtens (1614-1670), who was particularly skilled at the representations of family groups. This kind of classical group portraits in which the sitters are clad in colourful dress (often a combination of contemporary fashion and fantasy costumes) and set in an arcadian landscape, were in great demand in courtly circles in The Hague. Soon this type of formal representations were favoured by the city's upper class, such as the sitters in this portrait who, according to a label on the reverse, can be identified as members of the Loth family.

1. E. Buijsen, Haagse Schilders in de Gouden Eeuw. Het Hoogsteder Lexicon van alle schilders werkzaam in Den Haag, 1600-1700, Den Haag/Zwolle 1998, p. 301.