Frans Hals

Online special ‘Strokes of Genius’

In Frans Hals: Strokes of Genius, Joanna Lumley takes the visitor to 17th-century Haarlem, where Frans Hals was the go-to painter for a good portrait. Whether it concerns a stately regent, a couple in love, a musician, a fish seller or a laughing child, with his innovative painting style Hals gave his subjects unprecedented mobility and liveliness. When listening to his life story in Frans Hals: Strokes of Genius, Joanna Lumley brings these people to life even more. You will also learn more about Frans Hals himself and explore why his painting style was so revolutionary. Moreover, for the first time ever it will be possible to zoom in on his paintings down to the smallest detail.

On view in Amsterdam for the first time

A selection of around fifty key works has been made from Frans Hals’ extensive oeuvre. These include works from the Rijksmuseum’s own collection – The Merry Drinker, Portrait of a Couple – and a number of special loans, for which we are extremely grateful. These include The Laughing Cavalier from the Wallace Collection in London, a work that normally never travels, as well as Catharina Hooft with her Nurse and Malle Babbe (Gemäldegalerie, Berlin), Family Group in a Landscape (Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid) and Fruit and Vegetable Seller (Private Collection Bridgenorth). The exhibition features another first: the group portrait The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Civic Guard from 1616 (Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem), will be seen outside the city of Haarlem for the first time ever.

Watch him grow as an artist

The exhibition centres on Frans Hals’ style, which was as freewheeling as it was lively. A style that won him praise and prestige, and earned him a reputation as a forerunner of impressionism. Encompassing around fifty works, this exhibition gives you, the visitor, the chance to watch him grow as an artist. Painting by painting, you can see him breaking with convention and gaining in confidence as he finds his own inimitable way. At the same time, the exhibition paints a fascinating picture of the times in which he lived. The ‘bourgeois realism’ of which Frans Hals was a master gives a remarkable insight into the lives of his patrons and the norms, values and traditions of the age.

Who was Frans Hals?

Frans Hals was born in Antwerp between 1582 and 1584, the son of a weaver. In 1585, the family fled the Spanish invasion and ended up in Haarlem. There, Frans was trained by painter Karel van Mander. In 1610, he joined the Haarlem painters’ guild and became an independent artist with his own apprentices and assistants, including Judith Leyster. Frans Hals was celebrated, admired and sometimes despised for his ‘rough-and-ready style’.His main focus was on portraits and he also created masterful militia pieces. Frans Hals died in 1666 and is buried in the Grote Kerk in Haarlem.

Created with

Frans Hals at the Rijksmuseum has come to life in collaboration with the National Gallery in London and the Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, with the special cooperation of the Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem.

BOOK

The exhibition will be accompanied by the book Frans Hals, published in collaboration with the National Gallery, with contributions by Bart Cornelis, Friso Lammertse, Justine Rinnooy Kan and Jaap van der Veen.

This book presents a fresh view of this astonishing artist, and places him and his work firmly in the context of his day. The impressive close-ups of details serve to underscore his exceptional talent.

Thanks

The exhibition Frans Hals is made possible in part by Ammodo, Rijksmuseum International Circle, Rijksmuseum Patrons and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science.