Man with Viola Da Gamba 1631

Gerard van Honthorst painted this portrait of a musician with his viola da gamba in the Netherlands, sometime in the early 17th century. The man’s flamboyant costume and confident demeanor suggest he is either a professional musician or perhaps a wealthy amateur. During this period, music was becoming increasingly important in both public and private life. Civic institutions and aristocratic courts employed musicians, and the rising middle class filled their homes with instruments. The display of musical skill became a sign of social status. How an individual was placed within the class structure of the time would determine their access to these institutions. Historians of art and music consult archival documents to better understand the precise nature of these social relations. By combining visual analysis with historical research, we can begin to appreciate the significance of images like this, and how the public role of art and music may have looked at the time.