Portrait of a Young Artist

The identity of the subject remains in question, though he has at times been called Leonaert Bramer, Carel Fabritius, Jan van de Cappelle, and Jan Asselyn. The painting is in the style of Rembrandt’s portraits of the late 1640s, but it could well be the product of a pupil or imitator. Mr. Frick’s purchase of this canvas in 1899 signaled a new stage in his development as a collector; previously he had favored the work of contemporary French Academic and Barbizon painters.

The Frick Collection: Handbook of Paintings, New York: The Frick Collection in association with Scala Publishers, 2004.