New Book Explores the Sophisticated and Engaging Portraits of Hans Holbein

Catalogue complements the first major North American exhibition of the artist’s paintings

Holbein

Capturing Character

Author

Anne T. Woollett

Holbein: Capturing Character book cover
Aug 18, 2021

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Body Content

Hans Holbein the Younger portrayed his contemporaries with supreme technical skill and attention to detail, during a time when representation of the individual through image, text, or some combination thereof reached new heights.

Known today primarily for his portraits, Holbein was one of the most versatile and inventive artists of the early 1500s. In drawings and paintings of arresting verisimilitude, Holbein conveyed the ideals and pursuits of a wide range of patrons, including scholars, statesmen, courtiers, and women of distinction.

Holbein: Capturing Character (J. Paul Getty Museum, $50) explores the artist’s visual strategies and intellectual approach to personal identity. In addition to reproducing many of Holbein’s painted and drawn portraits, the book delves into his relationships with leading humanists, such as Erasmus of Rotterdam and Thomas More, and considers his drawing technique as well as his contributions to book printing and culture. Examination of his finely lettered inscriptions and his designs for jewels, hat badges, and other exquisite objects reveals the impressive range of Holbein’s skill and ingenuity.

This volume is published to accompany the first major show of Holbein’s paintings in the US, and will be on view at the J. Paul Getty Museum from October 9, 2021, to January 9, 2022, and the Morgan Library & Museum from February 11 to May 15, 2022.

Author Information

Anne T. Woollett is curator of paintings at the J. Paul Getty Museum.

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