Van Dyke in Britain

The attention focuses on different things when looking at paintings in an exhibition. With Holbein, it's the uncanny ability to capture a likeness with a few lines; with Hals, it's how happy his sitters always look; with Van Dyke, it's the shimmer of light on rich fabrics. There's no doubting the wealth of status of these people. Armour gleams, satin and silk shine, pearls rest against milky skin. Sometimes, as with Teresa Lady Shirley, the application of paint giving the effect is clear. In other paintings, it's more subtle. As a student of history, it's also fascinating to be brought face to face with people previously known only by name. Several of the subjects were to be subsequently killed in battle during the Civil War (including one of the little sons of the Duke of Buckingham, painted by Van Dyke soon after their father's assassination) and most of the males played some role in the conflict. Personally I was most moved by the portrait of the tragic Lucius Cary. A sweet-faced man gazes out at the viewer and one can easily imagine the great sadness that gripped him as his country slipped into war.