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Caroline Robbie of Quadrangle discusses artworks by Hans Holbein the Younger that have inspired her

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Caroline Robbie, Quadrangle

Interiors are what you experience through the tactile nature of surfaces and light: for example, smooth, soft, cold and rough. Starting my creative journey as a painter, I always strived to faithfully render the surfaces of my subject matter with the consummate skill of Hans Holbein the Younger in his era-defining portraits from the court of King Henry VIII.

All of that velvet and ermine, wool and silk, leather and brocade set against pale white skin adorned with gold and pearls – the paintings were so visually tactile. Imagine what he would have done with today’s textiles!

 

Hans Holbein The Younger Christina of Denmark, Duchess of Milan The National Gallery, 1538 Oil on oak 179.1 x 82.6 cm Presented by the Art Fund with the aid of an anonymous donation, 1909, © The National Gallery, London