Jan van Haensbergen

Private collection, United States, by 1986;

Anonymous sale, New York, Christie’s, 31 May 1991, lot 135;

Where acquired by the present collector.

In the seventeenth-century Dutch Republic, small-scale portraits gained popularity as symbols of prosperity among the emerging merchant and upper classes. Leaning against a balustrade with a sense of casual elegance, the sitter displays his wealth through the rich fabrics of his clothing, the golden brocaded curtain to his right, and the glimpse of a manicured garden containing classical sculptures beyond.

Jan van Haensbergen was elected a member of the painting guild in Utrecht in 1668 and established a successful career in The Hague the followuing year. A pupil of Cornelis van Poelenburgh (1594 or 1595-1667), Van Haensbergen was a prolific artist who enjoyed a long career as a landscape painter and portraitist. While his landscapes imitate the distinct Italianate style of his teacher, his portraits—characterized by a refined technique and brilliant coloring—bear the influence of Caspar Netscher (1639-1684).