[...] key works by the artist amidst paintings by such famous predecessors as Titian, Rembrandt, Rubens, Van Dyck and Jordaens [...]. This extraordinary confrontation of old masters is essential to the understanding of seventeenth-century art. Famous painters often produced their works in response to one another, seeking to outdo the other artist and create something exceptional. The best way to assess the results of their efforts is to look at comparable works side by side. Visitors can see for themselves the artistic challenges Hals must have faced and what makes him unique. The paintings come from some of the world’s greatest museums, among them the National Gallery in London, the Prado in Madrid and the Louvre in Paris, and from various private collections.