Portrait of a fat lady (Petronella Dunois Groenendijk?)

Portrait of a Fat Lady from 1684 by Nicolaes Maes at the National Museum in Warsaw is a remarkably honest portrait that does not flatter the sitter's corpulent figure. Dutch portrait painters were expected to deliver accurate likenesses—the culture's commitment to truthful representation was a point of pride—and Maes's unflinching rendering reflects this professional commitment. Maes trained with Rembrandt in Amsterdam in the early 1650s before establishing himself as an independent master. His mature portrait style maintained the naturalistic characterization of the Dutch tradition even while absorbing Flemish elegance in other respects. The sitter is rendered with unflinching naturalism, Maes's honest approach to physical description creating a portrait of character as well as likeness.

The sitter is rendered with unflinching naturalism, Maes's honest approach to physical description creating a portrait of character as well as likeness.