Studieblad met tekenvoorbeelden: staande figuur, haan en koppen 1610 - 1672

This study sheet with drawing examples was produced by Michael Snijders, a Flemish artist, some time in the 17th century. The artist presents us with a range of subjects, from classical busts and a proud cockerel, to a woman in contemporary dress. It is striking how many of these heads are based on classical sculpture. We know that, from the Renaissance onwards, a deep knowledge of ancient art and literature was regarded as essential for any aspiring artist. Art academies across Europe were founded on this principle. We might see this study sheet as evidence of Snijders’s own classical training. If we want to understand this image better, we could look at the ways academies functioned in seventeenth-century Flanders. We might also ask, what was the social status of the artist at this time? The meaning of art is always contingent on its social and institutional context. It is the task of the art historian to uncover this context through careful research.