




Boy with a Lute, ca. 1625
Frans Hals (Dutch, 1582/83–1666)
Oil on canvas
Frans Hals (Dutch, 1582/83–1666)
Oil on canvas
28 3/8 x 23 1/4 in. (72.1 x 59.1 cm)
Bequest of Benjamin Altman, 1913 (14.40.604)
This spirited picture is painted in a manner that seems mostly characteristic of Hals around 1625. Judging the work's quality is hampered by abrasion of the paint surface and old restorations. Little is known about Hals' workshop; it is possible that assistants occasionally collaborated in the production of his popular genre scenes. His gifted pupil Judith Leyster and other Haarlem artists painted compositions very similar in subject and style to this one.







