Staande jongeman met een breedgerande hoed en een mantel Possibly 1651 - 1658

Harmen ter Borch created this drawing of a standing young man with a wide-brimmed hat and cloak with pen in gray ink and brush in gray and black ink. Made in the Netherlands during the Dutch Golden Age, a period of unprecedented wealth and cultural achievement, this drawing might at first seem like a simple study of a figure. But let’s consider what it might say about the era. The Golden Age saw the rise of a prosperous merchant class, and with it, new forms of art patronage outside of the church and aristocracy. Artists like Ter Borch catered to this market, producing images of everyday life, and this figure, with his fashionable hat and cloak, embodies that new social mobility. What can paintings tell us about this period? By examining costume books and records of mercantile activity we can understand more about the aspirations and social codes of the rising middle class of the 17th century.