# Portrait of a Man

[View the canonical artwork record](<https://beta.wga.hu/artists/bouts-dieric-the-elder-rd14f14ded1bbd1/portrait-of-a-man-r0bbcdab2dc05b0>)

## Artwork

- Artist: [BOUTS, Dieric the Elder](<https://beta.wga.hu/artists/bouts-dieric-the-elder-rd14f14ded1bbd1>)
- Date: 1451-1500
- Technique: Oil on wood, 31 x 20 cm

## Commentary

Dieric Bouts has sometimes been referred to simply as a portrait painter, so exceptional were his achievements in this genre. His Portrait of a Man - one of the few paintings by Bouts which can be attributed to him or even dated with any great certainty - is an absolute masterpiece for example. Although relying entirely on harmonic variations of brown, incorporating tints of pink or mauve, Bouts here went as far, perhaps, as it is possible to go in the exploration of the human face. His drawing is always rigorous and self assured. Here, he uses it to accentuate the articulation of the hands, emphasizing the veins and lines.

## Related artworks

- [Adoration of the Magi](<https://beta.wga.hu/artists/bouts-dieric-the-elder-rd14f14ded1bbd1/adoration-of-the-magi-ra93499ba225ae7>)
- [Altarpiece of the Holy Sacrament](<https://beta.wga.hu/artists/bouts-dieric-the-elder-rd14f14ded1bbd1/altarpiece-of-the-holy-sacrament-r02bb72eb1a5570>)
- [Altarpiece of the Holy Sacrament](<https://beta.wga.hu/artists/bouts-dieric-the-elder-rd14f14ded1bbd1/altarpiece-of-the-holy-sacrament-rc3f202e2dc2187>)
- [Christ in the House of Simon](<https://beta.wga.hu/artists/bouts-dieric-the-elder-rd14f14ded1bbd1/christ-in-the-house-of-simon-ra8523c92ba8090>)
- [Coronation of the Virgin](<https://beta.wga.hu/artists/bouts-dieric-the-elder-rd14f14ded1bbd1/coronation-of-the-virgin-r13f2f6b45df603>)
- [Ecce Agnus Dei](<https://beta.wga.hu/artists/bouts-dieric-the-elder-rd14f14ded1bbd1/ecce-agnus-dei-r602c7e5c47a0c5>)
- [Hell](<https://beta.wga.hu/artists/bouts-dieric-the-elder-rd14f14ded1bbd1/hell-ra891fa74a1dc8a>)
- [Martyrdom of St Erasmus \(central panel\)](<https://beta.wga.hu/artists/bouts-dieric-the-elder-rd14f14ded1bbd1/martyrdom-of-st-erasmus-central-panel-rf9b9592de73c1d>)
- [Martyrdom of St Erasmus \(detail\)](<https://beta.wga.hu/artists/bouts-dieric-the-elder-rd14f14ded1bbd1/martyrdom-of-st-erasmus-detail-rd1e5b0d9e93202>)
- [Martyrdom of St Erasmus \(left wing\)](<https://beta.wga.hu/artists/bouts-dieric-the-elder-rd14f14ded1bbd1/martyrdom-of-st-erasmus-left-wing-r43f2ee3dfe7b5b>)
- [Martyrdom of St Erasmus \(right wing\)](<https://beta.wga.hu/artists/bouts-dieric-the-elder-rd14f14ded1bbd1/martyrdom-of-st-erasmus-right-wing-rf9fc5075cfe4cc>)
- [Martyrdom of St Erasmus \(triptych\)](<https://beta.wga.hu/artists/bouts-dieric-the-elder-rd14f14ded1bbd1/martyrdom-of-st-erasmus-triptych-r7fd64f3d388b32>)

## Attribution

[Web Gallery of Art](<https://beta.wga.hu/pages/about>)