Marcus Gheeraerts II: Elizabethan Artist

by Karen Hearn

Marcus Gheeraerts II (1561/2-1636) was one of the most significant painters to work in England during the age of Shakespeare. Gheeraerts produced some of the most haunting and beautiful portraits in British art including, most famously, his 'Ditchley portrait of Elizabeth I, the largest surviving image of her. Although born overseas, in Bruges - effectively an outsider - it was he who defined the public images of the leading Britons of his age.
This is the first book to focus solely on Gheeraerts. Karen Hearn discusses his life and art in detail, with particular emphasis on what she terms the 'pregnancy portrait'. The book also includes an essay on Gheeraerts's techniques of painting by Tate Conservator Rica Jones, following examination and analysis of works in the Tate Collection.

64 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2003