|
| | | Prev Artist Next Artist
|
|
Hans Holbein
German
1497-1543
Hans Holbein Galleries
Holbein always made highly detailed pencil drawings of his portrait subjects, often supplemented with ink and colored chalk. The drawings emphasize facial detail and usually did not include the hands; clothing was only indicated schematically. The outlines of these drawings were then transferred onto the support for the final painting using tiny holes in the paper through which powdered charcoal was transmitted; in later years Holbein used a kind of carbon paper. The final paintings thus had the same scale as the original drawings. Although the drawings were made as studies for paintings, they stand on their own as independent, finely wrought works of art. How many portraits have been lost can be seen from Holbein's book (nearly all pages in the Royal Collection) containing preparatory drawings for portraits - of eighty-five drawings, only a handful have surviving Holbein paintings, though often copies have survived.
David Hockney has speculated in the Hockney-Falco thesis that Holbein used a concave mirror to project an image of the subject onto the drawing surface. The image was then traced. However this thesis has not met with general acceptance from art historians.
A subtle ability to render character may be noted in Holbein's work, as can be seen in his portraits of Thomas Cromwell, Desiderius Erasmus, and Henry VIII. The end results are convincing as definitive images of the subjects' appearance and personality.
|
|
|
|
|
| Click Image to Enlarge |
Portrait of young people
mk252 canvas board 44 x 32.5 cm
Painting ID:: 57110
|
|
|
Portrait_of_young_people
mk252 canvas board 44 x 32.5 cm
|
|
|
|
| Click Image to Enlarge |
Mr Benedict Hetengsitan portrait
mk252 oil painting of wood paper 52.4 x 38.1 cm in 1517
Painting ID:: 57111
|
|
|
Mr_Benedict_Hetengsitan_portrait
mk252 oil painting of wood paper 52.4 x 38.1 cm in 1517
|
|
|
|
| Click Image to Enlarge |
Yuehanfuluo the portrait
mk252 Oil on canvas 39.5 x 33.5 cm in 1520-1526
Painting ID:: 57112
|
|
|
Yuehanfuluo_the_portrait
mk252 Oil on canvas 39.5 x 33.5 cm in 1520-1526
|
|
|
|
| Click Image to Enlarge |
Erasmus portrait
mk252 oil painting pine board 37 x 30.5 cm in 1523
Painting ID:: 57113
|
|
|
Erasmus_portrait
mk252 oil painting pine board 37 x 30.5 cm in 1523
|
|
|
|
| Click Image to Enlarge |
Thomas Cromwell
mk252 drawing board 78.4 x 64.4 cm
Painting ID:: 57114
|
|
|
Thomas_Cromwell
mk252 drawing board 78.4 x 64.4 cm
|
|
|
| Prev Artist Next Artist
|
|
Hans_Holbein
German
1497-1543
Hans Holbein Galleries
Holbein always made highly detailed pencil drawings of his portrait subjects, often supplemented with ink and colored chalk. The drawings emphasize facial detail and usually did not include the hands; clothing was only indicated schematically. The outlines of these drawings were then transferred onto the support for the final painting using tiny holes in the paper through which powdered charcoal was transmitted; in later years Holbein used a kind of carbon paper. The final paintings thus had the same scale as the original drawings. Although the drawings were made as studies for paintings, they stand on their own as independent, finely wrought works of art. How many portraits have been lost can be seen from Holbein's book (nearly all pages in the Royal Collection) containing preparatory drawings for portraits - of eighty-five drawings, only a handful have surviving Holbein paintings, though often copies have survived.
David Hockney has speculated in the Hockney-Falco thesis that Holbein used a concave mirror to project an image of the subject onto the drawing surface. The image was then traced. However this thesis has not met with general acceptance from art historians.
A subtle ability to render character may be noted in Holbein's work, as can be seen in his portraits of Thomas Cromwell, Desiderius Erasmus, and Henry VIII. The end results are convincing as definitive images of the subjects' appearance and personality.
|
|
|
ARTWORKS INDEX
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
ARTISTS INDEX A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
|
|
Wholesale China Oil Painting Wholesale Oil Painting China Xiamen Portrait Reproduction on canvas Chinese Oil Painting Wholesale
|
|
