Portrait of a Man, Standing Three-quarter Length c. 1660s

Curator: Looking at this work from the Dutch Golden Age, I’m immediately struck by the air of subtle confidence conveyed through the sitter’s gaze and stance. Editor: I find it immediately calming, perhaps it is the scale, but more probably the soft blending and hatching which creates volume. What can you tell me about the making? Curator: This drawing, currently held at the Rijksmuseum, is titled “Portrait of a Man, Standing Three-quarter Length,” and it dates back to the 1660s. What captivates me is that it’s not an oil painting, as one might expect, but rather an exquisite graphite drawing by Johannes Leupenius. The materiality itself suggests a different layer of meaning. Editor: Indeed. Considering the era, graphite would have been meticulously sourced and prepared. Leupenius’s choice of graphite rather than ink or paint suggests deliberate cost considerations, it must have had an effect on production choices at the time and even for the artist! Did this medium allow for the proliferation of portraiture? Curator: Possibly so. More pointedly, the deliberate detail within his clothing - a double-breasted style coat - implies that this gentleman possessed a degree of societal standing and influence. Leupenius uses shadow and light with such finesse that it captures not just a likeness but an impression of status. His clothing may say much of his access to materials. Editor: I agree. Notice how Leupenius focuses on the play of light on the fabrics, especially in the sleeves and draped front of the sitter’s coat? He is quite skilled! We could also consider, more critically, how Leupenius portrays him as a consumer, enjoying the benefits of global trade in fine materials and metals that depended, at least in part, on colonial structures. Curator: Absolutely. And those are aspects not readily transparent without an intersectional consideration of societal inequalities and power dynamics. Leupenius and indeed, his subject may never have considered the production means of the man's garb. Editor: That’s a really interesting point. Thinking about it that way, looking closer to the material production changes our perception of this seemingly simple portrait and the message we are able to take from the figure's persona. Curator: Considering that, I’ll now regard the man, and artwork differently. Editor: As will I. I'll be sure to consider material origins for similar works of this period going forward!