Portrait of a boy around 1640 - Attributed to Bartholomeus van der Helst (1613 - 1670)

17th century Dutch school, attributed to Bartholomeus van der Helst. Oil on panel.
Imbued with the sober and refined manner of the painters of the United Provinces, our portrait seems to have come straight from the workshop of Van der Helst. In a mock Sienna-colored oval, on a plain dark background, the young man with the green gaze scrutinizes the viewer, the subtle treatment of his face giving it strength and truth. And the rich costume with metallic reflections, through chromatic harmonies, with the hair in particular, adds to the elegant style of the work.

Our portrait is presented in a refined frame in natural wood carved with acanthus leaves.
Dimensions : 40 x 31 cm - 50 x 40 cm with the frame

Bartholomeus van der Helst (Haarlem 1613 - Amsterdam 1670), who settled with his family in Amsterdam around 1627, lacks information about his apprenticeship. However, it is assumed that he may have been trained by Nicolaes Elias from the time of his arrival in Amsterdam, as the influence of the latter is perceptible in his paintings, at least during the first part of his career. Indeed, before 1648, his portraits, by their realism, their elegant sobriety and their tight framing refer to the supposed tutor. The young Bartholomew quickly became the fashionable portraitist of the wealthy bourgeoisie of Amsterdam and his success tended to eclipse Rembrandt. The completion of his masterpiece The Banquet of the Amsterdam Civil Guard Celebrating the Peace of Münster in 1648 (preserved in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam) marked a turning point in his career: his style evolved, the color palette became richer and the subjects more lively. Commissions were pouring in and he composed collective portraits of families or corporations. His son Lodewijk followed suit and imitated his style.
Among the many paintings by Bartholomeus Van der Helst in museums are: Self-portrait 1667, Uffizi Gallery, Florence - Portrait of Petrus Scriverius 1651, Gemäldegalerie, Dresden - Portrait of Paulus Potter 1654, Mauritshuis The Hague or the truculent Portrait of Gerard Andriesz Bicker 1642 in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.