Characteristics Of 17th Century Dutch Painting

Seventeenth Century Dutch Realism and Comprehensiveness

Seventeenth century Dutch artists were influenced by many factors to produce paintings that were extremely realistic. The paintings were done to meet requirements of their patrons, who required a high degree of technical skill and handling of paint that leaves no trace of the painted hand, so the finish is almost photographic. This was achieved by learning their skill as a trade within the guild system. The inclusion of so much detail in paintings of landscapes and genre painting can be a historical record of the lifestyle and habits of the Dutch during the seventeenth century. Although Dutch paintings in the seventeenth century were often not done from real life, but were created in

Many Dutch artists did however produce history paintings, although they were much harder to sell. Landscape and genre painting were popular and regularly produced by seventeenth century Dutch artists. Dutch painters covered every genre including landscapes, portraits, domestic scenes, religious and many more.

Compared to earlier European painting, not many religious paintings were produced by seventeenth century Dutch artists. This was because artists relied on patrons and commissions or sales to the bourgeoisie, as the Calvinist church forbade religious paintings to be hung in churches during the seventeenth century. Although the church did not commission religious paintings, which would have been the case in other European countries, a small number of religious were commissioned for private

Realism can not only be seen in the techniques used by Frans Hal, but can also be seen in his positioning of figures. This set of portraits depicts the married couple in two separate frames. Nicholaes van der Meer stands firmly in his portrait whilst his wife sits submissively in hers, and the fact that his wife is sitting on the left hand side which was considered the lesser side depicts realistically, Dutch views of marriage at the time. Hals shows impressive attention to detail and also shows his ability to paint realistically in this set of portraits. This can especially be seen in the highly decorative clothes that the pair are wearing. Texture throughout the painting is obvious including the fur trim on Cornelia Vooghts robe. Each individual; brushstroke can be seen in the fur making it extremely realistic. The lace cuffs on her robes also show unprecedented realism. However it is not only the garments worn by Nicholaes van der Meer and his wife that shows realism through texture. The metal lion heads and studs shown on the decorative chairs reflect the light revealing their shiny reflective surface. The way in which the artist uses light in this painting is the main technique used to produce incredible realism. In