Portrait of a Woman, Frans Hals, c. 1635
oil on canvas, h 81.5cm × w 68cm Catalogue entry
Compared with the dynamic Portrait of a Man, this one of his wife makes a somewhat more formal impression. The pose is traditional, with the upper torso turned slightly to the left. She looks straight at the viewer, her lips slightly parted as though she is about to speak. Her face is rendered in much thinner paint than that of her husband, beautifully suggesting the greater softness of a woman’s skin.
