REMBRANDT -- Dutch Painter

REMBRANDT SELF PORTRAIT 1658

The Netherlands' greatest painter is, undoubtedly, Rembrandt. In the 17th century the Dutch inspired a wealth of paintings of ordinary things and everyday life. Rembrandt created an even deeper and more universal art.

The present day Netherlands and Belgium, were in those days the Low Countries and occupied by the Spanish. In 1570 the people revolted against King Philip II of Spain. After that the Spaniards took back the southern provinces and it remained Catholic. In 1609 the seven Northern provinces won their independence.

The new republic known as The Netherlands, developed and prospered. It became very wealthy and powerful because of the sea-farers, traders and financiers. Fine houses rose along the canals of Amsterdam and other Dutch cities.

Here a dominant force developed from a class of merchants with a matter-of-fact and down-to-earth outlook. The Netherlands were quite a tolerant society but their religion was Protestantism and in its most severe Calvinist form.

THE STORM ON THE SEA OF GALILEIAdd caption

A PAINTING  AT THE HEIGHT OF HIS SUCCESS

THE ABDUCTION OF EUROPA 1632

Calvinists believed it is wrong to adorn places of worships. This stopped the ceiling and walls being painted with colourful pictures. No glorious altarpieces or sculptures were allowed. Neither large scale works for palaces of kings nor were nobles allowed. The Dutch developed a more modest and sober tastes. However, they put pictures on the wall showing portraits and from domestic interiors to landscape and flower paintings.

All this, developed a new style of painting. The patrons and painters share the same outlook and the demand grew for paintings showing every day life. This encouraged a huge number of paintings which were produced at that time. In avoiding the glamorous and extreme, they painted the everyday objects and life with great skill. This change led to the golden age of Dutch art and many great artists were produced in the 17th century.

Rembrandt Harmenz van Rijn (1606-1669) a miller's son was born in Leiden, the second biggest city in the Netherlands. He settled in Amsterdam and enjoyed great success. When he was only 26 years old he painted the famous group portrait 'The Anatomy Lesson of Doctor Tulp. After that commissions for history paintings and large portraits poured in.

He married the daughter of a wealthy family and this improved his popularity even more. He moved into a grand house on Breestraat. His success continued and in 1642 he painted the famous group portrait 'The Night Watch' which he changed from an indoor scene to a lively, colourful street scene. He broke with the tradition that every member should the same equal prominence. It is assumed that either not everybody paid the same amount or nobody objected because it was such a masterpiece.

THE NIGHT WATCH 1641That year, Rembrandt's wife Saskia died. Her will stated that he could not touch her money and was to be kept for their oldest son, Titus, for when he came of age. This precaution confirms the story that Rembrandt was an extravagant, eccentric character.

Then the decline of Rembrandt's popularity set in and also the decline of his fortune. However, he still had a certain number of clients. He started to go his own way, although there was hardly any demand for Biblical paintings, he painted many. The reason for the trouble is unclear but in 1656 he became bankrupt. The grand house was sold to pay the debts. He rented a place on the outskirt of Amsterdam.

REMBRANDT'S SON TITUS AS A MONK 1660

His son, Titus, went with him and a servant girl Hendrickje Stoffels. After his wife's death she became his companion and had a daughter. Titus and Hendrickje became officially Rembrandt's employers. This is a legal trick to avoid the painting being taken by debt collectors. This shows that all three were very closed together and Rembrandt was well cared for. His work, with the improvement on human feeling, produced further masterpieces like 'Jacob blessing the Sons of Joseph', 'The Jewish Bride' and 'The Return of the Prodigal Son',

In spite of money problems, Rembrandt seemed to have had a happy home. Unfortunately in his final years he had to experience two tragedies. His faithful Hendrickje died in 1663 and in 1669 Titus died a few months before Rembrandt became ill and old age fatigue set in.

Rembrandt was a master of painting, drawing and also of black-and-white printmaking technique such as etching. He would specialise in one subject but produced a huge number of portraits of individuals as well as groups, many Biblical mythological and historical works and later when he lived at the outskirts of Amsterdam, a smaller number of landscapes.

Rembrandt was a painter of humanity and was not very interested in painting objects. When he started to paint, his work show historical set-pieces in the Italian manner, which are a contrast of light and shade to show the dramatic effect. Later on in his life, he tried to convey the thoughts and feelings of the people he portrait. He tried to show the simplest of scenes adding a quiet but intense emotion. He was more interested in painting ordinary men and women. He painted - Saskia, Hendrickje and Titus - times and times again as if he was searching for something. Also he painted self-portraits quiet a lot.

SASKIA

Unbelievable, over ninety self-portrait survived and no other artist has such a record. As a matter of fact, Rembrandt was well ahead of his time showing himself in formal dress or fancy dress. He painted his true features which were rather blunt, doggy and showed the progress of age and fatigue. This unique record of his life is nothing but a masterpiece.

At the time of Rembrandt there was no demand for his self-portraits and therefore there was no income from this kind of market.

In the great age of the 17th century Dutch art and although there were other Dutch painters became famous but non like Rembrandt.

Pieter de Hooch(1629-1684) and Jan Vermeer (1632-1675) both from the little town of Delft, al painted lovely scenes of tranquillity. Vermeer became more famous of the two yet little is known about his life and only 40 painting were acknowledged. The best known paintings show women working or playing a musical instrument in the light-filled rooms of their homes.

Maindert Hobbemma (1638-1709) and Jacob van Ruisdael (1628-1682) were masters in painting Dutch landscapes.

A MAN WITH A GOLDEN HELMET