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Hans Holbein the Younger

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Artist

The Resume

    (circa 1497-1543)
    Born in Augsburg, Germany
    King’s Painter to Henry VIII of England (1535-43)
    Paintings include ‘Portrait of Erasmus of Rotterdam’ (1523), ‘Lais of Corinth’ (1526), ‘Portrait of Sir Thomas More’ (1527), ‘The Ambassadors’ (1533), ‘Portrait of Henry VIII’ (1536) and ‘Henry VIII at 49’ (1540)
    Woodcuts include ‘The Dance of Death’ (1523-26)
    Died sometime between October 7 (when he made out his will) and November 29 (when an executor was named for his estate) of 1543

Why he might be annoying:

    He was fined for fighting in the street with a goldsmith (December 10, 1517).
    He fathered two children in England while his wife was in Basel, Switzerland.
    He had no compunctions about abandoning patrons (such as Thomas More) when they fell out of favor.
    His depiction of Jesus as an all too realistic cadaver in ‘Dead Christ Entombed’ (1521) prompted Dostoyevsky to have one of his characters declare, ‘Why, some people may lose their faith looking at that picture.’

Why he might not be annoying:

    He was named a burgher of Basel (1520)
    He also designed the state robes of Henry VIII.
    He has been called ‘the cameraman of Tudor history,’ since the appearances of many members of Henry VIII’s court are known only through his portraits.
    Art historian Ellis Waterhouse wrote that his portraits remain ‘unsurpassed for sureness and economy of statement, penetration into character, and a combined richness and purity of style.’

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 10 Votes: 70.0% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 20 Votes: 50.0% Annoying