Haarlem - Holanda
Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem, Holanda
OST - 218x421 - 1639
Hals new tendency towards restraint is seen in the two large
group portraits of civil guards made during the 1630s: the Officers and
Sergeants of the St Hadrian Civic Guard of Haarlem (c. 1633) and the Officers
and Sergeants of the St George Civic Guard Company (c. 1639), both in the Frans
Halsmuseum, Haarlem. The vivacity of the setting is already slightly subdued in
the group portrait painted 1633 by the subordination of the figures to a
horizontal band, and this horizontal accent completely dominates the
arrangement of the figures in the group portrait painted 1639. In both group
portraits the figures are set in the open air, but they lose rather than gain
in plein-air quality. This is particularly true of the picture of 1639, which
is dominated by a warm golden olive tone, while the one of 1633 still retains a
good deal of the colouristic vivacity and charm of the 1620s, and also some of
the compositional boldness and agitation of the earlier period.
The picture of 1639, in which Hals's self-portrait is to be
seen, is the master's last representation of a civic guard group. The whole
category virtually disappears in the Netherlands around the middle of the
century. After the Treaty of Münster of 1648, which gave Holland de jure
recognition in the councils of Europe, Dutch patricians preferred to be seen as
dignified regents rather than military men.
The Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1639 refers
to the last and largest schutterstuk painted
by Frans Hals for
the St. George (or St. Joris) civic guard of Haarlem,
and today is considered one of the main attractions of the Frans Hals
Museum there.
In this painting over 4 meters wide, nineteen men are
portrayed, each wearing a sash in the color of his "rot", or brigade.
All three brigades of the St George militia are represented, with their
flag-bearers carrying flags in the colours orange, white or blue. These officers
were selected by the council of Haarlem to serve for three years, and this
group had just finished their tenure and celebrated their end of service with a
portrait. The man with the commander's staff situated third from lower left
with the orange sash and orange feather in his hat is the Colonel Johan Claesz
Loo, who heads the militia. The other officers are carrying partisans with
tassles (captains), spontoons (lieutenants) or halberds (sergeants).
The men featured in the foreground are from left to right
Ensign Lambert Woutersz (with orange flag),
Sergeant Gabriel Loreyn, Colonel Johan Claesz Loo,
Lieutenant Francois Woutersz, Captain Michiel de
Wael, Lieutenant Cornelis
Coning, Captain Florens van der Hoeff, Captain Nicolaes Grisz Grauwert, Sergeant Lucas van Tetterode, Captain Quirijn Jansz Damast, Ensign Dirck Dicx (with
blue flag), and Ensign Pieter Schout (with
white flag).
The men in the background are from upper left, Sergeant Pieter de
Jong, Frans Hals (self-portrait), Ensign Jacob
Druyvesteyn, Lieutenant Hendrik Gerritsz Pot, Sergeant Nicolaes van
Loo, Sergeant Abraham Cornelisz van der Schalcken,
and Lieutenant Hendrick Coning.
Though a member of the militia, Frans Hals was never assigned
the rank of an officer, though he was clearly admired as an important local
artist, as was his fellow portraitist Pot, also portrayed in the rear lineup
(and who features in two schutterstukken for the other militia in town - the St
Adriansdoelen, or Cluveniers). Historians have speculated whether the
self-portrait is indeed Hals, or another absent officer (none of the
schutterstukken Hals painted were complete representations of all officers; the
men paid for their portraits and some men "skipped" a painting). By
the time Hals painted this painting, he had been a soldier of the guard for 25
years, and it had been 23 years since he completed his first schutterstuk for
this militia, a highly unusual length of time between commissions for any
artist of his time.
Besides showing local painters Hals and Pot, two other men in the rear lineup were relatives of local painters; Lieutenant Cornelis Coning was an engraver, Ensign Jacob Druyvesteyn was the son of Aart Jansz Druyvesteyn, and Sergeant Abraham Cornelisz van der Schalcken was the father of Cornelis Symonsz van der Schalcke, who some say painted the original landscape in this painting, though this was partially overpainted in 1702. This was done by local artist Dirk Maas, whose overpainting may have been meant to honor the local artist-architect Pieter Post. Another artist featured in this painting in the foreground is Quirijn Jansz Damast, a respected designer of fine-woven linen, whose work also featured in the tablecloth of Hals' first work for the militia, The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1616.
Besides showing local painters Hals and Pot, two other men in the rear lineup were relatives of local painters; Lieutenant Cornelis Coning was an engraver, Ensign Jacob Druyvesteyn was the son of Aart Jansz Druyvesteyn, and Sergeant Abraham Cornelisz van der Schalcken was the father of Cornelis Symonsz van der Schalcke, who some say painted the original landscape in this painting, though this was partially overpainted in 1702. This was done by local artist Dirk Maas, whose overpainting may have been meant to honor the local artist-architect Pieter Post. Another artist featured in this painting in the foreground is Quirijn Jansz Damast, a respected designer of fine-woven linen, whose work also featured in the tablecloth of Hals' first work for the militia, The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1616.
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