FRANS HALS Ahead of his Time at Rijksmuseum Amsterdam

Frans Hals Young man playing the lute. c.1623-1624 Oil on canvas, 70 x 62 cms.

Extraordinarily productive, innovative, entertaining and a little rough around the edges: Frans Hals was one of a handful of painters who defined the 17th century. His distinctive, freewheeling style of painting became so influential that it’s easy to forget that he was its founder. So after thirty years, it’s high time for a new retrospective.