The influence of Japanese art and English illustrators such as Walter Crane are apparent in his work, as are the Art Nouveau stylized elements prevalent at the turn of the century. Almost his entire output whether they are paintings, drawings, graphic work or applied arts, have animals as a subject. With a focus on graphic works, Hoytema kept his sketches and drawings mounted in portfolios organized by subject spanning a period of three decades of artistic output. Rarely did he sign or date drawings and therefore it is difficult to establish a chronology. Suffering from a chronic illness, most likely syphilis, Hoytema’s artistic output is limited to the beginning of the twentieth century.

When Hoytema died in 1917, as per his wish, the majority of his oeuvre entered the collections of the Gemeentemuseum in The Hague and the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, while over one-hundred drawings of animals and landscapes were sold at auction. The present pastel was the only fully executed portrait in the sale, an outlier in Hoytema’s dedication to the animal kingdom.