Portret van Joachim graaf van Ortenburg 1600 - 1604

Dominicus Custos created this portrait of Joachim, Count of Ortenburg, in 1599 using engraving. The composition immediately presents a study in contrasts, the Count framed within a rigid oval, juxtaposed against the fluid lines of his face and attire. The stark black and white of the engraving lend an air of austerity, offset by the intricate detail of the ruff and the Count’s patterned doublet. Custos masterfully uses line to define form, creating a sense of depth and texture. The Count’s gaze is direct, his features etched with a sense of gravity, embodying the stoic ideal of leadership. Yet, the decorative elements suggest a world of courtly life, a semiotic interplay of power and status, where appearance and reality are carefully constructed. Custos’s strategic deployment of visual elements invites us to consider the Count's self-fashioning within the complex social codes of his time.