Frans Hals. Master of the Fleeting Moment will include around 50 of the Dutch master painter’s greatest works, many on loan from top international collections. The exhibition is organized by the Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin in partnership with the National Gallery, London, the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, and through a special collaboration with the Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem.
Alongside Rembrandt and Vermeer, Hals (1582/83–1666) is considered one of the most outstanding Dutch painters of the 17th century. One of the greatest portrait painters of all time, he was unconventional, expressive, and innovative. It was not just the elites of the time who commissioned portraits from him, he was also the first artist to dedicate portrait-like depictions to people who were marginalised by society. His rediscovery in the 19th century left its mark on the evolution of modern painting like no other artist of the early modern era.
The exhibition features around 50 of the most important works by Hals from more than 20 public and private collections in Europe, the USA and Canada. As well as presenting Hals’s masterpieces, the exhibition in Berlin will also shed light on his artistic milieu in Haarlem, his collaborations with fellow artists, and the fascination that his work inspired among modern German painters at the turn of the 20th century.
Venues
The National Gallery, London, from 30 September 2023 to 21 January 2024
The Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, from 16 February to 9 June 2024
Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, from 12 July to 3 November 2024