Portrait of a Man

The Dutch painter Pieter Nason (1612-88/90) demonstrates his skill at rendering textures and detail. The man's starched and tasseled collar is decorated with expertly executed bobbin lace, as are the two finely pleated cuffs, one opened back to reveal its extreme delicacy.  The man’s fashionable costume, along with the heavy velvet drapes, gold tassels and marble column of the background, combine to convey a gentleman of wealth. This sense is bolstered by his poise and carefully groomed appearance, from the coiffed long golden wavy hair to the waxed tips of his elegantly thin moustache. The sitter’s left hand subtly gestures towards a decaying human skull. A common symbol in the art of the period, the skull serves as a momento mori – a reminder of the transience of life.  

The signature of the artist – ‘P. Nason 1633’ – is visible at the base of the column in the right background, just above the sitter’s left hand. Little is known about Nason. Documentation suggests that he was born in Amsterdam in 1612, where he was baptised in the Lutheran Church, the son of Herbert Nason, a butcher from that city. Nason was accepted as a member of the painters’ guild of Saint Luke in The Hague in 1639. The artist spent some time working at Cleves (northwest Germany), and in 1666 at the Elector's Court in Berlin, before returning to The Hague, where he died in either 1688 or 1690.