To say that Rembrandt van Rijn was a Dutch painter seems to me like
saying that Babe Ruth played a little ball or Columbus liked to sail. For me,
Rembrandt isn’t just a Dutch painter; he is the Dutch painter.
Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669)
Born in Leiden in 1606, Rembrandt was apprenticed at an
early age to Leiden history painter Jacob van Swanenburgh, followed by a short
apprenticeship with Pieter Lastman in Amsterdam, which is where he opened a
studio in 1624 with his good friend and colleague, Jan Lievens. By age 21
Rembrandt was accepting students.
Portrait of Rembrandt by Jan Lievens, 1628
As they say, one thing leads to another and by 1629
Rembrandt was discovered by statesman, Constantijn Huygens (father of renowned
Dutch mathematician and physicist, Christaan Huygens). Huygens introduced Rembrandt’s
remarkable talent for portraiture to Prince Hendrik, who continued to purchase
from Rembrandt until 1646.
Portrait of Saskia van Rijn by Rembrandt, 1633
In 1639 Rembrandt and his wife, Saskia moved to Jodenstraat
4, which is now the location of the Rembrandthuis Museum—one of the most
popular tourist destinations in Amsterdam.
Het Rembrandthuis
Apparently Rembrandt’s spending habits exceeded his income
because in 1656, bankruptcy led to the sale of his house and possessions.
Through meticulous inventories (kept by Rembrandt) and countless paintings, drawings,
and etchings we know with certainty what domestic life in the 1600's entailed.
Printmaker at the Rembrandthuis Museum
Opened as a museum in 1911, the Rembrandthuis collection of
original works produced or once owned by Rembrandt steadily grew. In the 1990’s
the adjacent properties were procured and an extension to the museum was added
(replete with public entrance, gift shop etc.). In addition to the collection
of drawings, etchings, and copper plates by Rembrandt the museum also owns
works by his teachers, pupils, and contemporaries hung much as they would have
been in his lifetime.
The master's artifacts for copy and study
Like I said, for me Rembrandt is the preeminent artist of
the 17th century. In a letter written to statesman and benefactor,
Constantijn Huygens, Rembrandt offered the only surviving explanation of his
artistic ambition: (to achieve) de meeste en de natuurlijkste beweegelijkheid
(the greatest and most natural movement). This expression is open to
interpretation, and here’s the one I prefer: (to achieve) the greatest and most
natural “motive” (meaning internal emotion and external movement).
When I see his pictures, I know his subjects. I know
Rembrandt.
He gave the world approximately 3,000 works of art including
600 paintings of which 55 are self-portraits. Because of these (and unlike most
of his contemporaries) we know exactly how he looked from an early age until he
died in 1669. It is in these portraits that “beweegelijkheid” is revealed.
No one could paint emotion (motive) like
Rembrandt—absolutely no one.
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