RKD at TEFAF Maastricht 2024
The RKD – Netherlands Institute for Art History is once again participating in TEFAF Maastricht, from 9 to 14 March. Our stand (no. 819) will be devoted to Frans Hals, marking the publication of the RKD Study Frans Hals and his workshop.
As a centre for research and knowledge of the arts of the Low Countries, the RKD does not deal in art. We welcome visitors to our stand, who would like to learn more about art in the broadest sense of the word. The databases on our new online platform RKD Research provide an important resource, with millions of records containing a wealth of art historical information about artists, artworks, collections and collectors, as well as archival material, documents and images.
Frans Hals
At the RKD’s stand you can enjoy a display of visual documentation of Frans Hals’s Portrait of Verdonck (c. 1627, National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh). The composition of the painting as we know it now, is the result of a successful conservation campaign, in which the details of its original appearance were restored. When the work was offered for sale at a London auction in 1895, it was described as a Man with a Glass of Wine. At that time the panel showed a merry drinker wearing a red beret and holding a goblet. In 1927 the Dutch conservator Martin de Wild used X-ray photography to discover the original composition. De Wild’s archive is held by the RKD.
Visual search
The RKD’s collection of visual documentation has been digitised and is available online since two months through RKD Research. This means that new possibilities for art historical research are now accessible for our users. Subscribers to RKD Research can enjoy extra features, such as the visual search tool. Reverse image searches can provide surprising results, allowing connections to be made which may have been overlooked in the past when working with the analogue documentation files. Besides historical photographs, the Visual Search tool will also return images of copies, fragments and mirror-images of the artwork that is the subject of your search. Visitors to our stand at TEFAF will be able to experiment with his new research tool.
TEFAF Maastricht 2024
TEFAF Maastricht, which is one of the world’s most important fairs for fine art and antiques, brings together objects of exceptional quality from all over the world and offers a platform to today’s leading art dealers and specialists. The 37th edition of TEFAF Maastricht takes place at MECC Maastricht from 9 to 14 March 2024. For more information visit www.tefaf.com.