Family In Split Portraits Reunites After Experts Reconnect Flemish Master Works

A 17th-century family of three has finally reconciled after scholars learned their portrait was separated at some point.

Flemish master Cornelis de Vos’ Double Portrait of a Father and Son, painted in 1626, features a man with his young son gently holding his hand. From their clothing, it can be surmised that the two generations come from wealth. However, the picture isn’t as complete as it appears to be—over the years, keen-eyed admirers have fixated on a part of a dress that can be seen in the bottom right-hand corner of the painting, suggesting that there was another sitter.

So began a search for the long-lost mother by The Nivaagaard Collection in Denmark, which owns the portrait, and the RKD – Netherlands Institute for Art History in The Hague. Experts at the institutions believed that the complete work had incurred some damage and was masterfully cropped between 1830 and 1859, thus tearing the mother away from the picture.

They subsequently stumbled upon a 1966 report from the National Museum of Art in Copenhagen, which was attached with a photo of the painting sans its frame, and showed its state after it had been cleaned and restored. The polished portrait revealed part of the arm of the mystery woman, which was adorned with an elegant cuff, embroidered gloves with red velvet detailing, and an opulent ring.

Notably, the researchers also turned to no other than Google to explore more portrayals of women by de Vos. Jørgen Wadum, a special consultant with the Nivaagaard Collection, said a simple search for a “portrait of a lady” yielded some “totally unexpected” clues.

Een onderzoeksproject van Nivaagaards Malerisamling en het RKD heeft geleid tot een geweldige ontdekking! @JorgenWadum en @AngelaJager11 vonden het portret van een vermiste vrouw en brachten haar weer samen met man en zoon in Denemarken. Kijk op: https://t.co/kb7PdOoioX pic.twitter.com/bTERBSvvRR

— RKD (@RKDnl) March 6, 2023

They finally found their missing piece with Portrait of a Lady, which was sold at an auction by Christie’s in London in 2014. The woman in this painting donned a large millstone collar just like the one on the man in the other portrait, pointing to the two subjects coordinating their outfits.

At the time, the Portrait of a Lady was presented with a dark brown background. However, its new owner, an art dealer in Amsterdam and Geneva called Salomon Lilian, had the work restored, which involved peeling off the layers of the covered-up backdrop. What emerged behind the lady was a blue sky with clouds hovering over some trees, a scene that serendipitously matched the backdrop of the double portrait.

We found a beautiful woman that had been lost for almost 200 years. Cornelis de Vos eloquently painted her, her spouse and son in 1626, but in the 19th century they became separated. https://t.co/C4asYXnKOz @AngelaJager11 @RKDnl @nycarlsbergfondet @Kulturmin @salomonlilian pic.twitter.com/dKWpp7zpMp

— Jorgen Wadum (@[email protected]) (@JorgenWadum) March 6, 2023

Scholars didn’t need a 23andMe test kit to gather that the woman and child were related, as the boy seemingly shared his mother’s facial features and brown eyes.

Experts don’t yet know when the double portrait got its moniker, but they presume it happened after the artist’s death.

With this being Women’s History Month, it’s good timing that this erased female figure has finally had her existence recovered.

Although the reunion is long overdue, the family will remain as one going forward, as the Nivaagaard Collection has received a grant from the New Carlsberg Foundation to acquire the Portrait of a Lady and have both works together.

[via UPI, Codart, The Art Newspaper, images via various sources]