HANS HOLBEIN THE YOUNGER (1497/8-1543)
Henry Brandon, 2nd Duke of Suffolk (1535-1551)
c. 1541RCIN 422294
Henry Brandon wears a doublet made of shot silk (also known as ‘changeant’ fabric). Constructed using warp and weft threads of differing colours, it has a characteristic iridescent appearance. Holbein skilfully layers the paint to show how the silk on the sitter’s arm changes colour, from red to green, as it rotates away from the viewer.