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This painting belongs to a group of small full-length portraits in meticulously delineated interiors, executed by the Amsterdam artist Thomas de Keyser in the 1620s and 30s, which were extremely influential upon the development of Dutch portrait painting in the second quarter of the seventeenth century. In each case the sitter is placed in a rich interior, informally posed with lively gestures, looking confidently out at the viewer. The first of this series is de Keyser's splendid portrait of the Stadholder's secretary Constantijn Huygens and his clerk of 1627 (National Gallery, London), which seems to have been an immediate success.
The sitter of this painting is identified as the Amsterdam gold- and silversmith Christian van Vianen (c.1600-1667), who later became court goldsmith to Charles II of England. Christian was the son of Adam and the nephew of Paulus van Vianen.
The painting is signed with monogram and dated centre left: TDK 1630.
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