Portret van een onbekende edelman met baret 1660

This is a portrait of an unknown nobleman with a beret, etched by Lucas Vorsterman II, a Flemish artist, around the mid-17th century. The image presents a man of status, evidenced by his attire, suggesting the significance of social hierarchy and class consciousness in the Dutch Golden Age. It invites us to consider the role of portraiture in constructing and reinforcing social identities. What did it mean to be noble at this time? Vorsterman was part of a network of printmakers that served the publishing industry in Antwerp. Printmaking, with its capacity for reproduction and distribution, had implications for the dissemination of ideas and images. Investigating archives, correspondence, and publishing records helps us understand how Vorsterman's prints circulated, and how they were received by different audiences. The social and institutional context in which art is produced affects not only the themes it explores, but also its modes of distribution.