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This work increases and enhances the Museum’s very small collection of portraits of the Flemish middle-classes. Key worked for various Spaniards in the Low Countries and this is a particularly good example of his abilities as a portraitist, the genre for which he was principally celebrated. Despite the limited, sober colour range, the subject is presented in a sincere, accessible manner.
This group portrait of a middle-class Flemish family, whose identity is now unknown, is one of Key’s finest works in this genre. It has the firm handling evident in his portraits of the 1580s, revealing his outstanding technical ability to convey textures and his mastery of light. Its innovative character is evident when compared with other Flemish family portraits. Key depicts the seven sitters (
