Regents of the Old Men’s Alms House
Regents of the Old Men’s Alms House
Regents of the Old Men’s Alms House
By Frans Hals
Regents of the Old Men’s Alms House
Regents of the Old Men’s Alms House
Regents of the Old Men’s Alms House

The regents from the Old Men’s Home, a home for men over the age of 60. The regents sit around the table. The house father is standing behind them. He and the house mother managed the daily household business. Hals’s imprecise painting style – typical of his later work – brought criticism in the 19th century. He was thought of as too old to paint. He made this portrait when he was about 80 years old. The second regent from the right has a strange look in his eyes. In the 19th century, people thought that he was drunk when he was painted, but he probably suffered from facial paralysis. The Frans Hals Museum is located in the building of the Old Men’s Home.