Portret van een man met hoed en kraag 1888 - 1905

Derk Jan Boom made this portrait of a man with a hat and ruff collar in the Netherlands, though the date of its creation is unknown. This work, like many portraits of the period, evokes an interest in capturing the sitter's likeness, but goes much further than that, referencing visual codes of wealth, status and taste. The man's apparel indicates his proximity to the Dutch upper classes, who maintained strict dress codes. Wealthy members of Dutch society often wore ruff collars, and hats decorated with plumes of feathers. The integration of these articles of clothing into the portrait suggests an awareness of institutional artistic conventions. Historical records of Dutch society are vital resources for historians of art. Through this approach, we can come to understand the social conditions that made artworks like this so valuable. The meaning of art is thus contingent on its ever-changing social and institutional context.