Portret van een man met hoed 1701 - 1759

Cornelis Pronk created this understated graphite drawing of an unknown man during the Dutch Golden Age. The almost humble qualities of the portrait seem at odds with the period's more flamboyant and stylized representations of wealth and status. It makes you wonder, who was this person? The hat and coat, while rendered with a lack of ostentation, suggest a certain level of societal standing. Yet, in Pronk’s rendering, the individual's humanity seems to take precedence over any display of affluence. It invites us to reflect on the nuances of identity and representation in a time marked by strong social stratification and codified visual cues. It doesn’t tell the conventional story of Dutch prosperity, and instead, it offers a quiet study of a personhood that transcends social roles.