A Visit To The Holbein At The Tudor Court Exhibition

Last week I visited the brilliant ‘Holbein At The Tudor Court’ exhibition at the Queen’s Gallery. 

It was a fascinating insight into some of the characters of the day but also Holbein’s techniques of how he produced some of the most famous portraits of the 16th century. 

Hans Holbein the Younger

Hans Holbein the Younger was born in Augsburg in Germany in 1497/1498, the son of Hans Holbein the Elder, a German painter. He learnt the artistic craft from his father and in 1519 became a member of the Basel artist’s guild.

Hans worked with his father and brother producing largely religious works but when these commissions declined after the Reformation he had to seek other opportunities. 

Holbein travelled to London in 1526 seeking employment in the Tudor court of Henry VIII who was hiring artists to project the majesty and pomp of his court. He probably had a letter of recommendation from writer Erasmus to Sir Thomas More.

On Holbein’s arrival, More described his artworks in his diary as ‘wonderful’ and one of his first commissions was to paint a group portrait of the More family. It no longer survives but some of the individual sketches of family members do survive. 

He was a versatile artist working in miniatures, metal-work but is best known for his portraits. Anyone who was anyone in the early-mid 16th century wanted a portrait from Holbein. 

He was in London from 1526-1532 and again from 1538 until 1543 when he died of the plague.

Holbein’s Drawings

The core of the exhibition is made up Holbein’s drawings rather than his paintings. He would always sketch a sitter first from life before then using that to create the portrait. 

The drawings were probably acquired by Henry VIII after the artist’s death. They were in Whitehall Palace in the form of a ‘great book’. This book passed through various hands before being acquired by King Charles II in the 1660s. It has been in the Royal Collection ever since. 

They are incredibly lifelike and, more than the paintings I think, make you feel like you are in the room with the person depicted. In fact, on one of the paintings of a German merchant called Derich, is inscribed ‘if you added a voice, this would be Derich himself’.

I particularly thought this one was interesting of Sir Thomas More.

You can inspect both sides and can see the series of little holes that were punctured into the sheet. These were used to transfer the drawing onto a canvas to be painted.

Chalk dust would be rubbed through the holes onto the canvas, to create a pattern of dots to then draw on further or paint. 

I also found it interesting when the drawing was displayed with the finished painting. For example, you can see this drawing of Sir Henry Guildford, a Tudor courtier.

When compared to the final painting you can see that Holbein gave him a longer face to look more authoritative. 

Some More Standout Portraits

There is also some interesting information on some of the other intricate techniques Holbein employed in his paintings and drawings. 

Two Large Murals

There were lots of other well-known portraits and paintings from the period, not necessarily by Holbein, but often inspired by his style. 

They had, for example, this mural of Henry VIII, Jane Seymour and their son, future King Edward VI.

It is by an unknown artist but he has copied the faces from Holbein’s book of drawings to use as Holbein’s images were so iconic. 

They also had the amazing, recently restored, Field of the Cloth of Gold on display, usually at Hampton Court Palace. 

Dating from 1545, it depicts the splendiferous meeting of Henry VIII and Francis I of France near Calais in 1520. 

I love all the little details such as this chap who has had a bit too much to drink. Can you blame him when there is a free red wine fountain?

This lady is pulling her husband away from his fellow drinkers.

During the restoration work it was discovered that the Henry VIII figure astride his horse in the foreground was a later addition. A younger image of Henry was cut out and this one added in, probably later in his reign.

This was most likely so that he looks more like the more iconic Holbein portrait of Henry VIII rather than the much younger king he would have been in 1520. 

How To Visit

Hopefully that has given you a flavour of the exhibition and, if you are able to go, it has inspired you to visit!

The exhibition is on at the Queen’s Gallery Every Monday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday until Sunday, 14th Apr 2024. 

It is £19 for an adult and you book yourself a timed slot. 

Find out more about booking here. 

Thank you for reading! More of London’s incredible history below.