2016.21.FA Balthazar Denner, Old Man in a Fur-Trimmed Coat | DMA Staging Content Management System

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

Balthazar Denner earned international renown for his remarkable ability to realistically capture his sitter’s appearance down to the minutest detail. As seen here, Denner typically posed his subjects against a plain dark background; his sober and highly polished style is similar to that of 17th-century Dutch portraits. The specificity of this sitter’s features might suggest this is a portrait. However, Denner made a specialty of painting tronies, or imaginary likenesses of aging men and women, for wealthy patrons that included European royalty. His meticulous rendering of the old man’s skin and hair, seen in the tiny wrinkles around the eyes and the almost invisible white and gray stubble on his chin, lends the sitter a striking, palpable presence.

Excerpt from

Nicole Myers, DMA label copy, 2017.

NOTES

Created 1728

Checked Piction

Catalogue essays

Foundation for the Arts

Artist/designers

Denner, Balthazar (German, 1685-1749)

Cultures

Historical periods

Geography

Process/materials

Oil on panel

Individuals

Subject terms

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PROVENANCE

AUDIO ASSETS

VIDEO ASSETS

IMAGE ASSETS

WEB RESOURCES

The State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg~Check out a similar portrait by Balthazar Denner.

ARCHIVAL RESOURCES

FUN FACTS

TEACHING IDEAS

RULES

Apply to objects where number equals 2016.21.FA

General Description

Balthazar Denner earned international renown for his remarkable ability to realistically capture his sitter’s appearance down to the minutest detail. As seen here, Denner typically posed his subjects against a plain dark background; his sober and highly polished style is similar to that of 17th-century Dutch portraits. The specificity of this sitter’s features might suggest this is a portrait. However, Denner made a specialty of painting tronies, or imaginary likenesses of aging men and women, for wealthy patrons that included European royalty. His meticulous rendering of the old man’s skin and hair, seen in the tiny wrinkles around the eyes and the almost invisible white and gray stubble on his chin, lends the sitter a striking, palpable presence.