Frans van Mieris, Portrait of a Man, 1669, oil on panel, 9in x 6 3/10in
Portrait of a man, 1669 along with Mieris Portrait of a Woman, 1669 were commissioned together as pedant portraits. Pendant portraits in the 17th centenary Northern Dutch communities were wedding portraits were commissioned to be hung together. Thematically, these portraits served as allegorical themes that references the bible and reflected the Dutch beliefs of women being the lesser vessels. The left side, allegorical to left hand of God was the lesser and evil side, while the right side, the right hand of God, was the mightier and righteous side. The pendant portraits were designed for the viewer to stand with the couple so that the woman is on the left wife was on the viewer’s left side and the husband is on the viewer’s right.
Frans van Mieris the Eder was one of the most successful Dutch fijnschiders “fine painters”, born and died in the city of Lieden in 1635-1681. The fihnschider were painters who strove to create highly realistic materiality of their subject through tight meticulous brush strokes. Mieris trained with three different artists the first was Abraham Van Toorienvilet, Arabham ven den Tempel, and Garard Dou, who influenced the Mieris the most. Dou taught him precision painting with oils and the fijnschilder style of painting, a style in which Dou later dubbed Mieris “the prince of my pupils”.Mieris emulated Dou in both style and subject matter. Mieris, became famous for his excellent handling of the fijnshilder style in his narrative genre paintings, and portraits.
-Joycelyn Fitts