Dramatic Context
Georgia Brown
The Artist | Painting Style : Life and Social Status
Hans Holbein The Younger. Painting styles and famous works, how he captures the Sitter.
The Dance of Death was one of Holbeins most famous works, shocking the public with his brave approach to death and open attitude towards it.
Holbein. H. (1947). The Dance of Death. Glasgow: Robert Maclehose and Co, LTD.
 FACTS: CAUSE OF DEATH"Reached stylistic maturity early and died, in his mid fourties" "He had reached london by December 1526 and remained there until the summer of 1528." "By July 1532 he had arrived in London and dated works punctuate his residence there until his sudden death of the plague in 1543." "From 1536 at least, he had been working for the king and his provate portrait-painting practice in London was evidently thriving." Roberts, J. (1979). HOLBEIN. Millbank, London: Oresko Books. |  First Works, Signed and dated:"1515 by Hans the Younger: a table top painted in the trompe l'oeil technique, with comico-grotesque elements" - National Museum at Zurich. "The Artist was born towards the end of the fifteenth century at Augsburg," "The richness of that great city was giving rise to a lively artistic movement. The art of the Italian Renaissance and the humanistic ideas had taken deep roots in the artistic milieu of Augsburg;" Boureanu, R. (1977). HOLBEIN. Millbank, London: MERIDIANE PUBLISHING HOUSE. |  Renaissance and Validity:"the portrait was included in a vast series of representations whose aim was to observe the elements of nature." "In 1533 Holbein painted the portrait of a merchant who had the inscription added:" "The immediate relation of the viewer himself to the portrait." "The legal definition of the portrait increased its value as a testimony, but it automatically reduced its validity to a short period of time, pointing out the ageing process, working on the sitters face" |
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 Career Progression:1532-4- "Employed as a portrait painter for the merchants of the Hanse in London" "in 1533, he prepares a decoration for the procession of Anne Boleyn at her Coronation." 1536- "Nicolas Bourbon describes Holbein as the kings painter." 1539- "Holbein is sent to the Continent to paint the portrait Anne of Cleves, whom Henry VIII had chosen as his next wife" Batschmann, O. and Griener, P. (2006). Holbein in England. Hans Holbein. Millbank, London: Tate Publishing. |  Colour Mix:"And no fewer than five colours are used to create the tonal harmony of the panel - the lessons learned in france" Batschmann, O. and Griener, P. (2006). Holbein in England. Hans Holbein. Millbank, London: Tate Publishing. |  From the above text:Painting a Background, The Kings Painter: "from September 1532 to September 1538" "granted commissions on a regular basis, ranging from mural decorations to portraits and designs for jewels." "Holbein, it seems, now preferred such simpler backgrounds to those, adorned with curtains and architectural elements, that are so typical of his first English period." Batschmann, O. and Griener, P. (2006). Holbein in England. Hans Holbein. Millbank, London: Tate Publishing. |
 His Life: DevelopmentAbove: Self portrait of the Artist 1542/43 (Indianapolis) "In the Swiss city of Basle he was able to develop his gifts in the most varied fields of the formative arts" "Hans Holbein is called the 'younger' to distinguish him from his father Hans, a leading master of the Late Gothic school in Augsburg." Ganz. P. (1950). THE PAINTINGS OF HANS HOLBEIN THE YOUNGER. Complete Edition. The Phaidon Press. Page 171. |  Details about his SuccessAbove: Self Portrait of the Artist 1523/24 (Basle) "he executed the mural in paintings in Basle town hall, decorations on the facade of houses, portraits and many designs for glass painting. But the bulk of his work consisted of designs of woodcuts, among these being the celebrated series of the 'Dance of Death'" Ganz. P. (1950). THE PAINTINGS OF HANS HOLBEIN THE YOUNGER. Complete Edition. The Phaidon Press. Page 67. |  From the above text:"He decided to settle perminently in London, where portrait-painting would always assure him a remunerative living." "The first portraits which he painted after his return to London are dated 1532, the sitters being country gentlemen from Norfolk and German merchants from the Steelyard in London." Ganz. P. (1950). THE PAINTINGS OF HANS HOLBEIN THE YOUNGER. Complete Edition. The Phaidon Press. Page 1 |
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Most useful found reference material:
Left:
"A comparison between the drawing and the finished portrait of Southwell (Plate 29) shows how complete Holbeins conceptions were before the painting was undertaken. Although corrections were sometimes made on the panel, the notation of light and shadow and such identifying features as the scar on his throat, were pinpointed from the start with such authority that the static massed volume of the sitter was fully realized before paint was applied.
The face is changed very little between the two works- it is the garment that is altered"
"The simplicity of thwbackground and the emphatic lineearity of the design accentuate the overall sense of calculation."
Above text, images to the left and below text reference:
"Holbein used the plain background with the gold lettering that became frequent in the later years; the impression of depth is created by the figure alone."
"This tendancy towards simplicity, and the elimination of all accessories, is characteristic of his late portraits. After 1535 the sitters are usually shown in the full light, focused against a background of blue or green, and very often in simple frontal poses."
Langdon, H. (1994). HOLBEIN. Third Edition. 2 Kensington square: London. Phaidon Press Limited
"There is quality of stillness and remoteness in the late portraits."
"His patient observation of surface detail, of the texture of skin, hair and fabrics is combined with an ability to suggest weight and volume and a sense of the dignity of personality."
"Holbeins sitters are recorded exactly as they were at one particular moment, but there is never any stress on the transitory;"
"They are characterized by an unusual stillness, precision and clarity.""He rarely allowed any emotion to intrude."
"Sheer skill with which Holbein used all the technical resources of Renaissance naturalism to create an image of completely convincing accuracy."
"It was this quality of life-like immediacy in portraiture that most impressed Holbein's contemparories."
