The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1616 by Franz Hals

~ JezzieG
The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1616 by Franz Hals

The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1616
1616
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Oil on canvas
Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem, The Netherlands

The first of three paintings for the St. George civic guard in Haarlem, “The Banquet of the Officers of the St. George Militia Company” is a large-scale work featuring the officers at their farewell banquet. Group portraits, known as shuttersstukken, were popular in the 17th century. The group would collectively decide on the format of painting then all sit separately for their likeness to be painted. Hals also demonstrates his abilities with still-life, especially the luxuriously decked table down to the detail of the figurative pattern of the tablecloth.

Franz Hals 1582/3-1666

Franz Hals
Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
Born: 1582/83, Antwerp, Flanders
Nationality: Dutch
Died: 26 August 1666, Haarlem, Dutch Republic

Hals was a painter of the Dutch Golden Age. Particularly known for his portraiture, he lived and worked in Haarlem, The Netherlands. Hals played a vital role in the evolution of 17th-century group portraiture and is known for his loose brushwork

Published by JezzieG

I am a freelance writer and poet and started writing after raising my two boys as a way of discovering just who Jez is. That is still very much an ongoing project but the journey so far has introduced me to many wonderful friends and fellow writers through an ever-growing love of poetry.