Page:Hofstede de Groot catalogue raisonné, Volume 3, 1910.djvu/26

 6 FRANS HALS SECT. him. The attribution to him of other works, such as the Dresden " Hille Bobbe," the Rotterdam "Operator," and many weaker copies of the pictures by his father, is entirely speculative. The same may be said of some pictures at the Mauritshuis, The Hague, which are signed with a monogram " CH," and are therefore ascribed to NICOLAES (CLAES) HALS. The doubtful signature on a "View of a Street" in the Haarlem Museum does not inspire confidence in the authenticity of the work. PIETER ROESTRATEN (about 1630-1698), the son-in-law of Frans Hals, was until recently known only as a still-life painter of fine vases and the like, who had little variety of theme, but was not without technical ability. The Haarlem Museum has lately acquired a signed figure-piece by him, which is related to a picture hitherto ascribed to Jan Steen in the Metro- politan Museum, New York, and to some smaller pictures in private collections. In these Roestraten reveals himself as an imitator of Jan Steen rather than of his father-in-law. Of the painters of peasant-life in the school of Frans Hals, the brothers VAN OSTADE and ADRIAEN BROUWER are treated at length in this volume. One may pass on to JAN MIENSE MOLENAER (about 1600-1668), already mentioned as the husband of Judith Leyster. His youthful works show most clearly in composition, handling, and colouring the direct influence of Frans Hals, under whose name many of them have been sold, as is noted, for instance, under No. 130. His merry scenes betray no small talent for painting. They are rich in colouring, and the prevailing tone is light. In rendering laughter he is only surpassed by his master. Many of his pictures show so close an affinity to the style of Judith Leyster that husband and wife seem likely to have collaborated. Later, in Amsterdam, he fell under the influence of Rembrandt's method of light and shade, and thus lost his merits as a colourist. Of the Haarlem portrait-painters, who are with more or less justice included in the school of Frans Hals, VINCENT VAN DER VINNE (1629- 1702) is not known by a single work which is certainly his. According to Houbraken, he was especially successful in his portraits, which were broadly painted in his master's manner. As he is said to have been Hals' pupil about 1650, his works must be sought among the anonymous portraits which approach most nearly in style to that of Hals in this year. JOHANNES CORNELIS VERSPRONCK (1597-1662) and PIETER FRANSZ, DE GREBBER (1570-1649) were the sons of two portrait-painters much respected in their time, Cornelis Engelsz and Frans de Grebber, to whom they certainly owe more of their artistic development than to Frans Hals, among whose followers they are often counted. JAN DE BRAY ( -1697) was also the son of a respected painter, but his works, in their breadth of handling, show so plainly the influence of Frans Hals that he may justly be named among the master's pupils. Reference may be made to the fine series of his works in the Haarlem