A painter of the heroic era of Holland, Frans Hals belonged to the generation whose hands built the independent Dutch state. Heyday is associated with his name national painting. Along with Rembrandt and Velazquez, Hals - Great master European portrait. His works are distinguished by their bold novelty and powerful love of life. Like no other painter, Frans Hals mastered the secret of conveying a lively smile that illuminates the face, an instant gesture, a relaxed pose. Whether the artist depicted the lower classes of society, poor fishermen, mischievous boys, dashing Dutch officers, or painted commissioned portraits of the prosperous bourgeoisie, everywhere he followed the truth of life in revealing the natural essence of man, his character and emotions. Hals was especially attracted to active, cheerful people full of irrepressible energy. He loved to capture subjects in action, in movement, in a specific life situation. The very surface of his canvases is permeated with movement and trembling of colorful strokes. According to French artist and writer Eugène Fromentin, "Hals's skill is incomparable, he knows it and loves for others to see it."

Hulse's brilliant work, reflecting its time, contrasted sharply with his largely prosaic, material unsettled life. It is uneventful and little known.

Hals was born in Antwerp, the son of a Dutch weaver, who returned to his homeland with his family in 1591. Hals studied painting with Karel van Mander in Haarlem, where he then lived and worked almost constantly. Hals enjoyed enormous fame during his lifetime, but died in poverty.

The artist’s famous works of the 1620-1630s are distinguished by a genre approach to portraiture, which initially did not have clearly defined boundaries. He observed these people on the streets, in the taverns of Haarlem, among participants in folk performances.

All in motion, the mocking “Jester with a Lute” (1624-1626, Paris, Louvre) is the embodiment of dexterity, fearlessness and ingenuity. The artist openly admires the charming “Gypsy” (1628-1630, Paris, Louvre). She is not only pretty, feminine and perky; in the image of a girl, whose gentle face glows with a sly smile, one can discern the elemental fullness of life. In every stroke, in soft brownish-golden, gray, pink tones- a feeling of lightness, inspiration.

We seem to hear the hoarse laughter of Malle Babbe, nicknamed the “Witch of Haarlem” (c. 1630, Berlin, State Museums). The innkeeper with the ominous owl on her shoulder grabbed her heavy beer mug, but something distracted her attention. Hals sees Malle Bubbe for what she is - a product of the dark, vicious, but indestructibly tenacious vitality. In the almost monochrome brownish-gray painting, long and short, thick and transparent strokes are deliberately sharp, rough, like prickly.

The image of fishermen (symbol of water) became popular in Haarlem, which was famous fishing. Hals repeatedly turned to this motif in semi-figured genre portraits. The painting from the Thyssen-Bornemisza Foundation shows a left-handed fisherman playing the violin against a backdrop of dunes and a cloudy sky. His smiling face was tanned by the sea sun. Black clothes, a white collar, and a bluish hat are skillfully combined with brownish, gray-silver shades. However, in this, not Hulse's best work, there is something superficial, uncharacteristic of his verbosity.

On the contrary, “The Merry Drinking Companion” (1628-1630, Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum), painted in a similar palette of black, white and gold, is impeccable in composition, sense of plastic form and color rhythm. With a quick and light touch of the brush, the gentleman's clothes made of soft suede, small facial features, fluffy hair, and a glass of wine in his left hand are conveyed. A dandy and a heartthrob, he openly addresses the viewer and is extremely pleased with himself.

Over the years, Hals's portraits become stricter and more restrained, in a more complex and deep psychological characteristics a hint of irony appears. The artist reveals sides in people that he may not have noticed before. Images of children, music, and festive mood gradually disappear from his work.

New tastes are establishing themselves in Dutch society. Successful businessmen and their well-fed families prefer lush, embellished images. Old artist, burdened with a large family, a regular at Haarlem drinking establishments with his careless life, loses customers. Later works Khalsa is its pinnacle creative path; The portraits, varied in their characteristics, sometimes mercilessly reveal in the models either narcissistic arrogance, or cold cynicism, or spiritual insecurity. Hals's painting style is changing, developing towards tonal harmony, exquisite combination black with silver-gray; The black tone itself is saturated with a richness of shades from charcoal to pearl gray. Flashes of white, pinkish and red color spots acquire a special sonority. Light, sweeping, careless strokes, as if moved from their place, going into different directions freely sculpt a plastic form.

In the Hermitage, attention is invariably attracted to two male portraits by Hals. One depicts an unknown young man; his performance is excellent, but at the same time the master does not hide the fact that the person being portrayed is quite ordinary. A different impression is given by the late “Portrait of a Young Man with a Glove in His Hand” (c. 1650). Khalsa is still attracted to strong, strong-willed natures, but the former exaltation is now replaced by secrecy inner life. Protruding from the dark darkness is the moving face of a stranger, in whom one can guess life experience, self-confidence, fatigue, irony, seems in many ways mysterious, his spiritual world remains undisclosed. The portrait is distinguished by the rare beauty of painting with an abundance of color nuances in black tone.

Hulse's art, enriched by the introduction of plot points, creating the impression of a continuous flow of life in which the sharply defined characters of people interact with each other, was exceptionally vividly embodied in his unsurpassed group portraits.

As an independent genre, corporate portrait developed in Dutch painting almost a century earlier. In a naive and constrained composition, isolated portrait figures were arranged in horizontal rows. Rigid rules of representation persisted for a long time.

During the struggle for independence and the subsequent national upsurge of Dutch society special meaning acquired group portraits of officers of rifle companies - a military association of citizens, a kind of honorary burgher militia. The officers, who had served together for several years, were holding a final banquet. The holiday was distinguished by its scope and duration. A resolution of the city authorities of Haarlem in 1621 ordered that it be limited to a period of no more than “three or, in best case scenario, four days." In Holland, group portraits of elders of various associations, trustees of hospitals, almshouses, and doctors, whose profession was respected and valued, were also commissioned.

How to create a group portrait special genre requires the artist to be able to achieve unity of the entire group while maintaining the individuality of each participant. Not all even outstanding masters coped with this difficult task. For Dutch artists, who worked before Hals and adhered to the old rules, it was simply unbearable.

In the tradition of this genre, Hals said a new word and breathed a fresh breath of life into it. Throughout his career, he turned to group portraits, which earned great fame. A large group of large paintings is now in the Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem. In the first painting, “Banquet of the Officers of the Rifle Company of St. George,” commissioned in 1616, one can still feel the dependence on the tradition of his predecessors; the artist largely restrains his pictorial temperament. Decisive changes affected the group portraits of officers of the St. George rifle company (1639, Haarlem, Frans Hals Museum) and the company of Captain Reiner Ried (1633, Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum). Scenes of no longer an official banquet, but a friendly feast, take on a free and relaxed character here. The group of officers seems to have been seen by the artist by chance, their poses are varied, their gestures are eloquent, sunlight plays on black clothes, white collars, colorful scarves and banners. The principle of intersecting diagonals emphasizes the asymmetry, picturesqueness and dynamism of the composition.

Hulse's characters are sincerely open to the viewer, inviting him to share their company.

A quick brush masterfully conveys matte silk, the depth of velvet, the shine of satin, the dense folds of starched collars, and sparkling metal.

Over the years, Khals's group portrait also loses its sense of festivity and becomes more strict and static in composition.

But at the end of his life, at the age of eighty-three, the artist painted unprecedentedly bold group portraits of the regents and regents of a nursing home in Haarlem, sharply breaking with the idea of ​​external goodness. Unique works for their time are the pinnacle of Hals's creativity. Both paintings have become very dark over time, but the impression they create is unforgettable. This is a brutally true portrait of the merciless destructive power of old age. A bunch of prim old women with sanctimonious, embittered, faded, insignificant faces and bony hands of greedy hands seem more organized; the regents still have a glimmer of affection for the material side of life. In the portrait of the regents, there is an atmosphere of confusion, anxiety, compositional discord of figures lacking stability, their awkward poses, chaotic gestures. The regent, fixing a dazed, cloudy gaze on the viewer, makes a speech that seems incoherent. In the gloomy coloring, the only strong color chord is a pink-red stain of fabric on the knee of one of the regents, the edge of a book in the hands of the regent. The brushstroke reaches the limit of freedom and mobility possible for Hals, the paint reaches its transparent fluidity.

It is not for nothing that Hals later became an idol of the Impressionists. The influence of his non-contemporaries and students was enormous in the portrait, everyday genre, in the development of the principles of colorism.

Tatiana Kaptereva

OK. 1580-1666

Portrait of a man

OK. 1650 Oil on canvas. 84.5x67 cm.

Right: monogram F.N.

Dutch artist Frans Hals entered the history of world art as outstanding master realistic portrait.

One of best works Khalsa - the Hermitage "Portrait of a Man" - dates back to the late period of the painter's work. A middle-aged man is depicted, wrapped in a wide black cloak. He sits with his arms akimbo, looking down and even somewhat contemptuously. A skeptical smile plays on his lips, his eyes are slightly narrowed. The viewer is clearly aware that in front of him is a person whose worldview is colored by skepticism and pessimism.

In the later portraits of Hals, the master of laughter and smiles, cheerful enthusiasm and cheerfulness disappear. Obviously, the changes that have occurred in the artist’s work reflect real changes in social life contemporary society.

Hals's pictorial style in the early 1650s (the time of creation of the Hermitage work) acquired unprecedented strength and breadth. The brushstroke becomes bold and energetic, and the characterization of the image becomes extremely sharp and expressive. "Portrait of a Man" is a brilliant confirmation of these qualities. One can only regret that in its present form it does not fully reveal Hals’s plan. Apparently, to please the tastes of the 18th century, a hat with a pom-pom worn on one side was recorded by someone else, which gave the image of the person being portrayed an almost grotesque character. The outline of the hat can be easily traced under the entry. In addition, in England, in the British Museum, there is a copy of the portrait made before its distortion, and perhaps precisely in connection with this. It depicts a man with his headdress pulled to one side.

In the 17th century, Holland became an exemplary capitalist country. She conducted extensive colonial trade, she had a powerful fleet, and shipbuilding was one of the leading industries. Hardworking farmers, the Dutch, in a relatively small area of ​​land, managed to create such a dairy industry that they became famous in the pan-European market.

At the same time, Holland during this period was also the most important center European culture. The struggle for national independence and the victory of the burghers also determined the character of Dutch culture in the 17th century. Protestantism completely replaced the influence of the Catholic Church, so the clergy in Holland did not have the same influence as in Flanders, Spain or Italy. Leiden University was a center of free thought. The spiritual atmosphere contributed to the development of philosophy, natural sciences, and mathematics.

Painting experienced an extraordinary flourishing in the 17th century. Main achievement Dutch art during this period - in easel painting. Man and nature were the objects of observation and depiction by Dutch artists. Hard work, diligence, love of order and cleanliness are reflected in paintings depicting Dutch life. Household painting becomes one of the leading genres, the creators of which received the name “little Dutch” in history, either because of the unpretentiousness of the plots, or because of the small size of the paintings (the paintings were intended not for castles, but for the living rooms of a city house), or perhaps for both. Despite the name of the Dutch artists, they were mainly major masters. Many painters worked in Holland. There was, as it were, a division of labor between them: many artists worked only in one narrow area. There are very few paintings on religious and mythological themes. The main customers were not the church, but the businesslike Dutch bourgeoisie, who wanted to see themselves and their lives in painting.

Although the features of the Baroque are still visible in Dutch painting of the 17th century, it still remained restrained and thoroughly realistic and truthful.

The history of Dutch painting of the 17th century is perfectly demonstrated by the evolution of the work of one of the largest portrait painters in Holland, Frans Hals.

Hulse works a lot in the genre of group portraits. This is basically a depiction of rifle guilds - corporations of officers for the defense and protection of cities. What captivates us in these portraits is not the portrait resemblance, but the ideals of the young republic expressed in them, the feelings of freedom, equality, and camaraderie. From the paintings of the 10s - 30s they look cheerful and energetic. enterprising people who are confident in their abilities and tomorrow(“The Shooting Guild of St. Hadrian”, etc.) Hals usually depicts them in a friendly feast, in a cheerful feast.

The large size of the composition, sonorous, rich colors (yellow, red, blue, etc.) create the monumental character of the image. The artist acts as a historiographer of an entire era.

Researchers sometimes call Hals's individual portraits genre portraits, because... Usually the images here appear among familiar objects, in a familiar situation: portraits government officials solving state affairs; portraits of matrons with pink or yellow skin, in white caps, in black woolen or silk dresses, discussing the budget or almshouses. He painted portraits of respectable townspeople in the family circle - husband, wife, child. He painted a tipsy drunkard, an old fishmonger grinning like a witch, a beautiful gypsy whore, babies in diapers, a daring reveler of a nobleman with a mustache, boots and spurs. He painted himself and his wife, young lovers, on a turf bench in the garden after their wedding night. He painted tramps and laughing boys, he painted musicians, he painted a fat cook.

In Khalsa's portraits late period the carefree prowess, energy, and pressure in the characters of the depicted persons disappears. The coloring of his paintings becomes strict, almost monochrome. It is usually dark, black clothing, with a white collar and cuffs, and a dark olive background color.

Two years before his death, Hulse returned to group portraiture. He paints two portraits of the regents and regents of a nursing home, in one of which he himself found refuge at the end of his life. The portrait of the regents lacks the camaraderie that was present in previous portraits. The models are disunited, powerless, bleary-eyed, devastation written all over their faces. The gloomy color scheme (black, gray and white) adds a special tension to the pinkish-red stain of fabric on the knee of one of the regents. So, in his ninth decade, a sick, lonely and impoverished artist creates his most dramatic and most exquisite works.

Epochs of the Golden Age of Dutch art. He was very popular, he had many orders and students, but the artist died in complete poverty in a shelter for the poor. This is how the life of a genius turned out.

Frans Hals: biography

A little less than four hundred years separate us from the life of the great artist. But little is known about him personally. His father was a weaver in Antwerp, married for the second time, into which Frans Hals was born. The family then moved to Haarlem, which is located about twenty kilometers from Antwerp. At the time of his birth there was no peace in his homeland. cities were besieged, stormed, and destroyed. Immigrants fled to Haarlem from all directions. The city grew rich and began to show great interest in art. That’s probably why Frans Hals almost never left Haarlem. Having learned the profession and been accepted into the Guild of St. Luke, which in those days was an analogue of the Academy of Painting, young Hals first became a restorer.

Six years later he gains fame as a portrait painter. And a year later he gets married. Five sons will be born in the marriage, and all will follow in their father’s footsteps - they will become portrait painters. The peak of popularity and flowering of the genius's creativity occurred in the years 1620-1640. But then they begin to forget him. This is how the fame of a painter named Frans Hals passes. Paintings are almost never commissioned. Poverty is approaching, which leads the master to the poorhouse. He dies in it. In the Hermitage you can see two male portraits painted by the great artist.

Portrait of an Unknown Man (1650-1652)

The meager color scheme that Frans Hals came up with in these years allows one to fully concentrate on the face of the person depicted. The model's wide white collar further draws attention to her facial expression. with long curly hair and a mustache, calmly and confidently looks at the viewer.

He is wealthy and independent, mocking and, perhaps, full of aplomb. His pose is natural and relaxed. No disruptions in life threaten him. He clearly knows how to deal with any life situations. The portrait does not give the impression of being frozen or static. The artist achieves this dynamic effect due to the fact that the model is close to the viewer, her gaze is directed directly at him, and the elbow of the hand on which the person being portrayed leans is moved forward. It “torn” the flat canvas. It was a step forward into the future from portrait painting his time.

Portrait of a young man with a glove in his hand (1650)

The model gives the impression of calm self-confidence and cheerfulness. The gaze directed at the viewer is full of attention, interest and goodwill.

A slight smile plays on his lips. Visible thick strokes undiluted paint simply “sculpted” the model’s face. The white lace collar, illuminated hair and glove are painted in the same way. But the background and shadows are painted with translucent paint. Thus, the figure protrudes from the canvas in relief and approaches the viewer. All hand movements are accurately and skillfully calculated. This achieves the creation of a complete image.

Portrait of Isabella Cooymans (1689)

Without going deeply into psychologism, the artist Frans Hals paints a young, round-faced, pretty, friendly and simple-minded woman. This is a wealthy customer, and the painter uses all his skill to show jewelry and luxurious expensive clothes. The lace of the collar and cuffs was made with extraordinary care. The satin bows and ribbons that decorate the model’s belt and collar, as well as the translucent ribbons in her hair, shine.

A pearl necklace shimmers on a slender neck and a bracelet on a graceful hand that holds a rose. It is impossible to take your eyes off the satin of the dress, which is decorated with a light insert with lace at the hem. The portrait is made in golden-brown tones. The rich nuances of the color of the dark dress and the play of shadows make it possible to make the model convex, protruding from the plane of the picture. Despite all the pomp, the portrait has not lost its democratic character. He is in private collection.

"Head of a Boy in a Beret" (1640)

Close-up of a baby's head placed in a circle on a golden light background. The circle immediately completes the portrait.

The attentive gaze of the brown-eyed child is directed towards something curious, upward and to the right. The artist reflects a moment, a living moment of life. He grabbed it and transferred it to the canvas. The left side of the face is in shadow, which allows you to more clearly sculpt the oval of a young face and a chin with a dimple. The right one, illuminated by the light, plays with blush. Bright lips beautiful drawing tightly compressed. Light golden waves frame the face short hair. Their large curls hang low on the forehead, showing the beauty of the eyebrow shape. A low bluish collar and a white frill reveal a slender neck. The hair and beret follow the original circle shape. The work is in a private collection in London.

In this article we tried to include works of the master known and unfamiliar to the public. The painter primarily tried to convey feelings, emotions, intellect, and not a formal costume. And therefore the artist paid his attention to facial expressions, gestures, and poses. His artistic heritage, which is mainly located in the homeland, has gone far beyond its borders.

Frans Hals is a Flemish painter of the 17th century, known for such paintings as “Portrait of a Man” and “Portrait of a Young Man with a Glove in His Hand,” exhibited in the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, “Mark the Evangelist,” presented in State Museum them. A.S. Pushkin in Moscow, “Saint Luke”, stored in Odessa Museum Western and Eastern art. The largest collection of works by the great portrait painter is located in the Franz Hals Museum (Het Museum Franz Hals) in the city of Haarlem in Holland.

France was born in 1582-1583 in the city of Antwerp. Parents - Adriance, Francois Frans Hals van Mechelen, who was engaged in weaving.

The family moved to Haarlem in 1585, and the whole further fate The Khalsa will be associated with this city.

From 1600 to 1603, Frans Hals took lessons from the Mannerist painter Karel Van Mander. Since 1610, Hals joined the Guild of St. Luke (Het Gilde Van St. Lucas). This Guild united restorers, masons, glassmakers, painters and performed the functions art school. Those who joined the Guild regularly paid membership fees.

At first, France is engaged in restoration work, but gradually begins to try to draw portraits. Many rich and noble families lived in the city of Haarlem, and already in 1611 Frans Hals completed work on his first work.

The beginning of the way

In 1615, people started talking about Hals as a promising painter. He was glorified by the group portrait “The Banquet of the Officers of the Rifle Company of St. George” (1616). This work is considered the beginning of the "Golden Age" of the Flemish visual arts. Critics note the clarity and relief of the figures in the artist’s first works, the warm shades that convey the joy of existence of the characters depicted.

In the 20s of the 17th century, Hals tried his hand at different genres everyday scenes and paintings based on biblical stories. For example, images of the apostles Luke and Matthew (1623-1625, the paintings are in Odessa, in the Museum of Western and Eastern Art).

His favorite heroes in the 20s and 30s of the 17th century were the poor, ordinary townspeople, people from the people:

• "Jester with a Lute";
• "Boon companion";
• "Gypsy";
• "Mulatto";
• "Fisherman Boy";
• "Malle Bubbe";
• "The Smiling Cavalier" and others.

Even the holy evangelists are depicted as representatives of the common people, close and understandable to every viewer. Hals emphasizes the spontaneity and charm of his heroes, their ability to enjoy the simple moments of life. Each canvas has a bright personality, complex character, interesting to the artist and representing the whole vast world the soul of a commoner.

Democracy becomes the leading idea in the work of the Flemish painter.

The favorite genre of group portraits during this period was revised by the master: Hals abandoned the formal poses of the characters, tried to depict them in a real setting, emphasizing their ordinariness and “humanity.”

This is how the artistic canvas begins to conduct a dialogue with the viewer, arousing his keen interest. Based on these principles, the famous works Khalsa:

• “Banquet of officers of the St. Rifle Company. Adriana" (1623-27);
• “Banquet of officers of the St. Rifle Company. George" (1627);
• “Group portrait of the rifle company of St. Adriana" (1633);
• “Officers of the rifle company of St. George" (1639).

Khalsa's paintings represent all walks of life, real life pictures and real characters. Representatives of the nobility, military men, merchants, tramps at the moment of their everyday existence - all social types are equally interesting to the artist.

Khalsa is distinguished by ease and ease of writing, a temperamental manner of reflecting reality, dynamic images, and optimism.
Among the works of this period, the ceremonial “Portrait of Willem Heythuissen” stands out, where the character is depicted in full height in a formal suit.
Hals works in Haarlem and doesn’t like to leave the city. There is a work that had to be painted in Amsterdam, started by the artist, but never finished, which is why it had to be completed by another master.

Glory

The peak of Khalsa's popularity is considered to be the 40s of the 17th century. It was during this time period, in 1644, that Hals was elected head of the Guild of St. Luke.

In 1649, he painted a portrait of the philosopher and scientist Rene Descartes.

In the 40s, a larger number of paired portraits, images of spouses, were created: the spouse on the left canvas, the spouse on the right. Such works use traditional symbolism: flowers and plants next to the characters are associated with loyalty and devotion.

A husband and wife appear on the same canvas only in the “Family Portrait of Isaac Massa and his Wife” (1622).

The main feature of the paintings of this period is the deep psychological analysis, the desire to show the spiritual world of every person:

• "Regents of the Hospital of St. Elizabeth" (1641);
• “Portrait of a Young Man” (1642-50);
• "Jasper Schade van Westrum" (1645).

Paintings from this period are recognizable due to the silver and gray shades associated with immersion in the depths of the characters’ psychology.

Late period

The final stage of Khals's painting career is said to feature many shades of black and white. There are only a few colors in the works; at first glance they seem dim and restrained, but the artist works on chiaroscuro, halftones, and contrasting colors:

• “Man in Black Clothes” (1650-52);
• "Willem Cruz" (1660), etc.

This period is distinguished by the master's philosophical reflections on life and its meaning. Many works are pessimistic and convey the tragedy of human existence:

• "Regents of the Asylum" (1664);
• "Regents of the Nursing Home" (1664).

At the end of his creative career, Hals hardly writes, the circle of clients is shrinking, and his old age passes in extreme poverty and encroaching obscurity.

Character

Hals was a multi-talented and enthusiastic person. In 1616-1625 he was part of the Department of Rhetoric, a kind of public association literature lovers.

Testimonies from contemporaries characterize Frans Hals as an energetic, cheerful person, a lover of fun and jokes. Like his heroes, he loved merry feasts and noisy celebrations. This did not meet the strict requirements of the direction of Protestantism, which was then leading in Holland - Calvinism.

On the list negative traits The artist's character is straightforward, stubborn, hot-tempered, disorganized. Such qualities greatly harmed Khals in life and did not allow him to achieve honors and fame.

Family and Children

Hals first married in 1611 to a girl named Anetie Charmander, and in the same year the couple had a child. In 1615, Khalsa's wife died in childbirth, and a few days later the second child also died.

Thanks to the help of his first wife's guardian, Hals joined a militia detachment - the St. George's Rifles detachment, in which he served as a musketeer from 1612 to 1624.

In 1617 he remarried Lisbeth Reyners. Despite his wife’s hot-tempered nature, they lived together for more than 50 years.
Frans Hals had 11 children. 5 sons became, like their father, artists, whose main genre was portraiture.

The last years of the artist’s life were half-starved. Hals received a small pension from the municipality, but was in debt to the city's meat and bread merchants. Before his death, he ends up in a shelter for the poor.

The artist died in this shelter on August 26, 1666. There were only a few people at his funeral. In the house where Frans Hals ended his career, there is now art Gallery his name.

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