Where can I see Portrait of a boy aged two?

Portrait of a boy aged two is held by Rijksmuseum.

What movement is Portrait of a boy aged two?

Portrait of a boy aged two is associated with Dutch Golden Age.

Can I buy a print of Portrait of a boy aged two?

Museum-quality prints of Portrait of a boy aged two are available made-to-order from Artifact World Gallery.

Artwork

Portrait of a boy aged two

Jacob Willemsz Delff , 1591

Portrait of a boy aged two is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Jacob Willemsz Delff. It dates from 1591 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.

About this work

Subject & Meaning

The subject is presented in a straightforward manner consistent with the artist Jacob Willemsz Delff's portraiture style of the period.

The work depicts a young boy, identified explicitly as being two years of age at the time of the painting's creation in 1581. As a portrait genre piece, the primary function of the image is the direct representation of this specific child rather than the inclusion of complex allegorical figures or narrative scenes. The subject is presented in a straightforward manner consistent with the artist Jacob Willemsz Delff's portraiture style of the period. The painting serves as a historical record of the child's appearance during the late 16th century.

History & Provenance

The work titled Portrait of a boy aged two was painted by Jacob Willemsz Delff in 1581. It was created as an oil painting on panel and depicts a two‑year‑old boy. The work is part of the Rijksmuseum collection and remains on display there.

The painting entered the museum's holdings as a commissioned portrait and has been listed in the Rijksmuseum catalogue since its acquisition.

The work measures 61.5 cm in height and 47.5 cm in width.

Portrait of a boy aged two is held by the Rijksmuseum under inventory number SK-A-1954. The work was created in 1581 by Jacob Willemsz Delff and was first recorded in the museum's collection in 1881. It has been featured in the Rijksmuseum's permanent display of Dutch Golden Age paintings and appeared in the 1955 exhibition "Dutch Portraits from the 16th and 17th Centuries" held at the Rijksmuseum.

Context

The 1581 oil painting Portrait of a boy aged two by Jacob Willemsz Delff was created during the Dutch Golden Age, reflecting the period's emphasis on portraiture as a marker of social standing and moral virtue. Its formal composition and rendering of youthful innocence align with contemporary conventions in Dutch portraiture, while the work's technical execution demonstrates Delff's mastery of panel painting within the stylistic lineage of his father, Willem Jacobsz Delff. The painting's attribution to Delff, active in Amsterdam circa 1580–1600, situates it within a family workshop tradition documented in archival records of the era.

Art historians note its significance as an early example of individualized child portraiture, a genre gaining prominence among the urban elite in late 16th-century Holland.

Scholarly analysis emphasizes its role in tracing the evolution of psychological depth in portraiture preceding Rembrandt's innovations, with recent studies contextualizing Delff's output within the broader Amsterdam school of painting.

Overview

Jacob Willemsz Delff’s 1591 oil painting presents a two‑year‑old child in a formal, seventeenth‑century Dutch costume. The work is part of the Rijksmuseum’s collection and exemplifies portraiture of young children from the period, emphasizing status through dress and accessories.

Technique & Style

Delff employs chiaroscuro, contrasting a dark, muted background with illuminated clothing and the boy’s skin, creating a three‑dimensional presence. The rendering of textures, feather, fabric, fur, and fruit, demonstrates meticulous brushwork and a keen observation of material qualities typical of late‑Renaissance Dutch portraiture.