Jan Lievens
1630/45
Medium
Etching in black on cream laid paper
Dimensions
Sheet: 24.6 × 16.8 cm (9 11/16 × 6 5/8 in.)
Classification
etching
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
99
Art Historical Context
This exquisite etching, *Jan Lievens*, created by Flemish engraver Lucas Vorst around 1630–1645, captures the likeness of Dutch Golden Age painter Jan Lievens (1607–1674). Lievens, a close contemporary and sometime rival of Rembrandt, was renowned for his innovative portraits and history paintings. Vorsterman, celebrated for his reproductive prints after masters like Rubens and Van Dy, here showcases his mastery in translating Lievens's visage onto cream laid paper with remarkable fidelity. Etching, the medium of choice, involves coating a copper plate with acid-resistant ground, scratching l...