Portrait of a man in a wig

Portrait of a Man in a Wig from 1676 by Nicolaes Maes documents the adoption of the wig as a fashion accessory by the Dutch elite. The periwig, originally a French fashion, became increasingly common among Dutch gentlemen in the later seventeenth century. Maes trained with Rembrandt in Amsterdam in the early 1650s before establishing himself as an independent master. His mature portrait style absorbed Flemish elegance — producing fashionable likenesses with looser brushwork and warmer flesh t...

The wig's curling locks provide textural interest above the sitter's naturalistic face, rendered with Maes's characteristic attention to costume fashion.