Portret van Steven Blankaart 1670 - 1724

Jacob Gole produced this portrait of Steven Blankaart with a mezzotint. Consider the status that is being projected here. Blankaart was a physician and medical writer in the Netherlands during its Golden Age. The Netherlands was the first country to legalize capitalism and it subsequently underwent radical social change. This portrait demonstrates some of that change. The elaborate wig and the formal clothing of the sitter are visual symbols of status. What's interesting is that this status comes not from noble birth but from profession. The Dutch Republic was famously tolerant, and it became a haven for intellectuals of all kinds. By looking at censuses, and other documentary evidence we can build a picture of this society, its institutions and the place of art within it.