Hans Kemmer’s (1495-1561) portrait of Hans Sonnenschein shows a wealthy Lübeck merchant with the calm expression of a man who has no intention of being impressed by frivolities. I like that sort of realism. The artwork was painted between around 1520 and 1534 and it belongs to a moment when Lübeck was not only a prosperous Hanseatic city but also caught up in the great religious and political changes of the Reformation. Indeed, this must have been a confusing and often sub-optimal time to try to be a political or business figure, the whole religious movement of the region was changing quickly and that direction wasn’t clear.
Sonnenschein was not just a wealthy merchant but he was influential, playing a role in promoting the new evangelical movement in the city. The artwork didn’t originally look like this, it’s assumed that his widow had his clothing painted black to use the portrait as something of a memorial and he was given a citrus fruit to hold as a symbol of eternal life. On the reverse of the painting, a skeleton was painted which is really cheery for all concerned.
AI has had a go at restoring the painting to how it might have looked and this doesn’t feel like an unreasonable attempt. It certainly looks better than the later efforts to blacken his clothing and shove fruit in his hand….