Anthony van Dyck (1599–1641)
Portrait Study of Endymion Porter and His Son Philip, ca. 1632–33
Black chalk, heightened with white chalk, on buff paper
12 ½ × 9 1/2 in. (31.7 × 24.1 cm)
The British Museum, London
A prominent courtier and friend of Van Dyck’s, Endymion Porter is depicted with his youngest son, Philip, who was about five when this masterful study was made. The drawing corresponds to the left part of a family portrait of Porter and his wife and was probably made from life to capture the interaction between the figures and the complexities of their costume. The fingers of Porter’s hand resting on the pommel of a sword are drawn twice at right. A second drawing of young Philip, which may have preceded the present sheet, is displayed here.