The RKD – Netherlands Institute for Art History announced the publication of the first part of the RKD Study about Frans Hals, written by Prof. Dr. Claus Grimm.
The first part comprises three monographic chapters on the life, work, and reception of Frans Hals, and precedes the comprehensive catalogue raisonné that will be published in the spring of 2024. The author devotes particular attention to his theory on Hals’s workshop practice and the collaboration with other artists. Thanks to new insights gained by technical research, as well as new possibilities for comparing and analyzing works of art in minute detail – using high-resolution digital photographs – Claus Grimm now distinguishes which paintings, or which parts of them, were executed by Hals himself and which were done by studio assistants. A large number of details is reproduced in the publication, providing insight into the arguments for accepting or rejecting specific attributions.
Announced in 2022, the project is a collaboration between the RKD and the Frans Hals Museum. The second part will consist of a comprehensive catalogue raisonné of all paintings made by Frans Hals and his studio assistants, including works that are only documented through copies or prints, paintings with less straightforward attributions, and modern imitations.
Frans Hals and his workshop – part 1 is available online at rkdstudies.nl.
[text via codart.nl]