2024Samuel van Hoogstraten - Old Man at the Window, 1653 - Set

The Dutch artist was not only a painter but also an author and art theorist.

Samuel van Hoogstraten (1627–1678) was trained in the workshop of Rembrandt van Rijn. He travelled extensively, including to Vienna, where he was received by Emperor Ferdinand III, and where the painting depicted on the stamp was created in 1653. He spent his final years in his hometown of Dordrecht, where he wrote a treatise on painting that is still considered a classic of art literature today. In his works, he delved deeply into perspectives. His speciality was the so-called “trompe-l'œils” (“deceive the eye”), optical illusions that appear three-dimensional. "Old Man at the Window" is one such work: the man's head protrudes from an intricately painted window, giving the impression that it is detached from his body. The painting can be seen in the Picture Gallery of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.