Artwork
Portrait of a man

Portrait of a man is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Frans Hals. It dates from 1660 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
As a portrait executed in oil on canvas, the painting functions as a representation of an individual from the artist's late period in Haarlem.
Painted in 1660 by Frans Hals, this work depicts an unidentified male figure as its primary subject. The sitter is portrayed wearing a cravat and a garment described as a bathrobe, elements that define the visual iconography of the piece. As a portrait executed in oil on canvas, the painting functions as a representation of an individual from the artist's late period in Haarlem.
While the specific identity of the man remains unstated in available records, the inclusion of specific attire such as the cravat offers insight into the fashion and social presentation of the era. The work is currently held by the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, having previously been in the collection of Dr. Leon Lilienfeld.
Technique & Style
Created in 1660, this portrait by Frans Hals is executed in oil paint on a canvas support. The work measures 85.8 cm in height and 67 cm in width. It depicts a man wearing a cravat and a bathrobe. The painting is currently held in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
History & Provenance
Frans Hals executed this oil-on-canvas portrait in 1660 within the city of Haarlem. The work depicts a male figure dressed in a cravat and bathrobe. At one point in its history, the painting was owned by Dr. Leon Lilienfeld. It currently resides in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston.
Portrait of a man by Frans Hals (1660) is housed in the Museum of Fine Arts Boston. It entered the collection through the ownership of Dr. Leon Lilienfeld and was painted in Haarlem. The work has been exhibited at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston and the Museo del Prado, highlighting its significance in the portrait genre.
The painting measures 85.8 cm in height and 67 cm in width, reflecting its large-scale format.
It was created using oil paint on canvas, depicting a man wearing a cravat and a bathrobe.
Overview
Created in 1660, this oil painting by Frans Hals the Elder, an eminent portraitist of Haarlem during the Dutch Golden Age, depicts an unnamed gentleman. The work is part of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston’s collection, illustrating the period’s emphasis on individualized, realistic likenesses rendered with a brisk, lively hand.
Context
The work belongs to a period when Dutch artists catered to a prosperous merchant class, producing portraits that combined personal representation with subtle indications of wealth and taste. Hals’s approach, marked by swift execution and naturalistic detail, typifies the era’s shift toward more informal, yet technically accomplished, portraiture.
Artist & collection
Artist
Frans Hals the Elder (UK: US:; Dutch:; c. 1582 – 26 August 1666) was a Dutch Golden Age painter. He lived and worked in Haarlem, a city in which the local authority of the day frowned on religious painting in places of…


















