|
Dieric Bouts has sometimes been referred to simply as a portrait painter, so exceptional were his achievements in this genre.
His Portrait of a Man - one of the few paintings by Bouts which can be attributed to him or even dated with any great certainty - is an absolute masterpiece for example. Although relying entirely on harmonic variations of brown, incorporating tints of pink or mauve, Bouts here went as far, perhaps, as it is possible to go in the exploration of the human face. His drawing is always rigorous and self assured. Here, he uses it to accentuate the articulation of the hands, emphasizing the veins and lines.
|
