Frans Hals and Workshop - RKD Studies
July 9 2024
Picture: rkdstudies.nl
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The RKD in the Netherlands have finally published their Frans Hals and Workshop RKD Study online. This comprehensive study of all of Hals' paintings, undertaken by Prof. Dr. Claus Grimm, is presented in a new online form and draws great attention to the process of the artist alongside new considerations of his studio practise and collaboration with other named artists (see this article for an example of this new approach). There are many pieces of text which explain the visual analysis undertaken to identify the nuances outlined above.
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There is no doubt that this is a very exciting and important resource in regards to the future of catalogue raisonné projects. However, it is also bound to be controversial. Without pointing out any examples in particular, a quick surf through these pages will show that several rather famous paintings (including ones hanging in important museums and private collections) have been slightly (or significantly) downgraded and in some cases completely demoted to 'Workshop' in attributional terms. In fact, as the catalogue points out itself, there are some examples of paintings featured within that have appeared as recently in the 2023/24 London and Rijksmuseum shows as Frans Hals in full, however, have in his study been allocated to followers of completely different artists altogether. Having compared the websites of several museums and private collections to the attributions found in this study, it's clear that these institutions haven't budged just yet. We shall wait and see if and how the art world will respond in due course.
