Rembrandt: an Artist from Time - Essay Example

Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn 2007 This paper is dedicated to the art of Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, the Dutch Baroque artist, born July 15, 1606, Leiden, Neth – died October 4, 1669, Amsterdam. Rembrandt was widely known as the best etcher of his time, draftsman, painter of portraits, biblical, mythological and historical painting. He was the most fashionable portrait painter in 1630s. His etching cost much even during his lifetime, his technical mastery having a lasting effect on printmakers for centuries. His painting was characterized by rich color, broad brushwork and a mastery of chiaroscuro. His major interest was human psychology, his portraits and self-portraits exhibiting his penetration of character. Rembrandt was the ninth and the most gifted child of a miller and a baker. After finishing a Latin school he was sent to the university. His inclination to painting made his parents give him in apprenticeship to the local painter Jacob Isaacszoon van Swaneneburg (1619-22). However, Rembrandt got his chief training during the six month (around 1923) of apprenticeship in the studio of Pieter Lastman, the Amsterdam leading painter of biblical, mythological, and historical pictures of that time. Here Rembrandt learnt to draw grand subjects in a broad format, paying careful attention to dramatic gestures, compositional grouping, the details of ancient costumes and setting. It was here that Rembrandt got acquainted with works of the major baroque artists, with their interest to light and shadow and human emotions. The baroque style was characterized with naturalistic illusionism, underlined by dramatic lighting effects, high sense of theatricality, movement of forms and energy. Baroque artists strove to make art close and clear to common people. Unlike the Renaissance art with its focus on reason, Baroque paintings represented emotions, capturing the most dramatic points of the action occurring (Heindorff 2006). Rembrandt learnt the art of gesture and light from Elsheimer, Caravaggio, van Honthorst and other representatives of the baroque style. At the age of 22 Rembrandt opened a studio in Leiden, and in 1627 started accepting students. Later in 1631 Rembrandt moved to Amsterdam, became a professional portraitist and had students, among whom were most of the future prominent artists of Holland. (Encyclopedia Britannica 2006; Heindorff 2006). Danae, the mythological painting of 1636, relates to the early Amsterdam period in Rembrandt’s career. It was the time when he emulated the baroque style of Rubens. As usual, Rembrandt denied the traditional formulation of the subject and instead of the shower of golden rain he depicted his heroin bathing in a rich and luminous light. It is one of his most splendid nudes, which was reworked in 1650s (Encyclopedia Britannica 2006). According to Greek myth, Danae was the daughter of Acricius, the king of Agros. Once, an oracle prophesied that Danae’s son would kill Acricius. To avoid such a death, the king ordered to shut his daughter in a bronze room, to hide her from all men. However, Zeus saw the beautiful maid and fell in love with her. He penetrated the room in the form of golden rain that poured down into Danae’s lap. Soon she gave birth to Perseus (Hunter 1997). The picture depicts the moment, when Danae sees the golden rain that starts pouring from the roof and greets her lover, despite the mournful, bound cupid above her head. In the picture we can see a young naked woman lying on her bed. There is rich furniture and decoration around her, the linen is made of silk. The woman is lying on her left side, rising herself on her elbow and stretching her arm towards the golden rain streaming from above. There is a playful smile on her lips, her eyes are shining and filled with curiosity and joy. Her pose expresses expectation and desire. Her hair is styled, and arms are decorated with bracelets. A small golden cupid is hovering above her head. An alert maidservant is peering from behind the curtain in the background. The spectator’s attention is drawn to the figure of the young woman. It is achieved due to the successful usage of chiaroscuro, color and tones, and different lines. So the linen is depicted in cold light-blue tones, thus underlining the warmth of the girl’s body. She seems almost alive. Rosy and yellow colors used to portray the woman, contrasted to the dark colors of the surrounding background, create an illusion of inner light and life. The composition is diagonal, in fact, consisting of two triangles of light, with the brighter one being situated from left to right, and a supplementary one – from right to left. The triangles balance each other and create expression. The picture is obviously accomplished according to the rule of the golden section, with the major figure being shifted to the right. The tenderness of the female body is revealed with the help of the line, which is mild and shaded. At the same time the rest of the figures and objects are painted with more rough and smeared strokes. While the main figure is drawn in gentle rosy and yellow tones, the room is submerged into dark and light blue, cold colors, which is to emphasize the solitude of the woman, who is isolated from the whole world. The yellow light, falling upon her from the golden rain, is very bright. However, it does not make her nude to vulgarity, but underlines the inner strength and charisma. Shades on the body convey its sensuality and sexuality. The play of light and shade creates the atmosphere of intimacy and comfort. The tenderness of the skin is also emphasized by the texture of the linen, which is depicted with all the details. The texture of the things, which are situated further from Danae, is painted roughly. As a result, the body brightly contrasts with the background. The old face of the servant is done with rough and wide strokes, while Danae’s face is portrayed in details. This allows revealing the personality of the woman. Her entire image exhales youth, freshness, and amorousness. All the visual elements are used to strengthen the author’s message: depict a beautiful woman, as Rembrandt saw her. However, chiaroscuro seems to play the major role. Rembrandt portrays a woman, who arouses his desire. No doubt, he liked to look at her and he wanted to share his feelings with the spectator. He admired the female body, its strength and beauty and wanted to immortalize its image in his painting. After the death of Saskia, Rembrandt’s first wife (whose features are depicted in Danae), in 1642, his paintings became less exuberant and more sober in tones. His biblical paintings were mostly based on the plots from the New Testament now, and not the Old Testament, as they used to be in his early period. 1642 became the turning point in Rembrandt’s career. This was the year of The Night Watch, the painting that according to Michael Bockemuhl (2006) “symbolized for Rembrandt a bringing together of everything that had come before, but simultaneously a new beginning”. This painting is considered to be the most famous of his. Initially it was called The Militia Company of Captain Frans Banning Cocq. The new title was given to the work in the nineteenth century by Joshua Reynolds, while the picture became so dimmed and defaced by time that looked like a night scene. Only after it was cleaned it turned out that it represented a party of the musketeers coming from the gloomy courtyard into bright sunlight. It is a very big picture (initially 4x5 meters), even though it was cut later on its sides to be put to Amsterdam town hall in 1715, becoming 363x437 cm. Rembrandt completed the work on order. It was to be a group portrait of the Amsterdam militia. However, Rembrandt decided to show the musketeers preparing for a mission, and gave priority to the presentation of the general event and movement and not to working-out the individual portraits. This made his customers rather angry, while most of them were situated in the background (Bockemuhl 2006; Heindorff 2006). The picture is filled with movement, motifs and details. Textures, facial expressions, gestures, lighting effects are so various that it is difficult to enumerate everything you see. The composition is concentrated on the foreground marching figures, those of the Captain and the Lieutenant. The Captain is extending his hand, his mouth open. He is speaking to the Lieutenant, receiving his order. Other people in the background are also engaged into conversation, and action. They are wearing helmets and hats, some carrying swords and spears in their hands, others having shields and gorgets. A group of men are taking hold of the spears standing near the wall, while others are just coming up out from the archway. In the left-hand foreground we may see a running little boy, the helmet on his head being too big for him. The musketeer in red depicted next to him is loading his gun. A man in baggy breeches and in a helmet is striding with big steps behind the Captain. Two men are seen behind the Captain and Lieutenant engaged into the examination of their guns. To right from the Lieutenant the drummer is trying his instrument. A frightened dog is running away in front of the crowd of the men. A man in black is explaining something to his companion, repeating the gesture of the Captain. The background group consists of several men also involved into the activities of theirs. One of them is wearing a flag; another is looking at his spear. The gun of the man behind the Captain seems to have shot and we see the splash of fire. There is a female figure in a golden dress seen among the male ones. The variety of motifs is rich. The rapid change and movement is conveyed through the running boy and dog, striding Captain and Lieutenant, the shot of the gun, etc. Here-and-now instant is caught in the picture. One may also observe the lingering gestures of those listening and waiting for the command. The usage of lightning and shadow serves to emphasize the movement. The Captain’s hand is throwing a shadow at the Lieutenant so that is seems they are real and will step out of the picture. The great variety of activities marks the group as that of a Civic Guard. At the same time each activity is also used to characterize the particular tasks and roles of every individual. The picture reveals the moment preceding the final order to the people, which is to be passed by the Lieutenant. Before that each man reveals the individuality of their usual activities. The composition of the picture is rather complex. One sees the costumes and accessories characteristic with the epoch fulfilled in detail. In the period following the Night Watch pictures varied in subjects, size and style. The tendency to create the dramatic effect due to the sharp contrast of shadow and light was substituted by the use of frontal lighting and a larger range of colors. The shift to a classical mode of composition took place. In 1650s the painter’s style changed again, paintings having increased in size, color scheme having become richer and brush strokes more pronounced. At this time his work was influenced by Titian. Rembrandt preferred to produce works that were to be watched from a distance. In his late period Rembrandt painted many landscapes. His biblical paintings revealed the shift of interest from the dramatic effect to intimate portrait-like figures (The Jewish Bride 1666). Rembrandt is known to have partially lost the favor of patrons of Amsterdam in some time of his life, however, that rejection was gradual and never total. The isolation provided the painter with personal independence and allowed ever greater exposure of his talent in his works of the late period (Encyclopedia Britannica 2006, Heindorff 2006). Rembrandt’s known heredity includes about 600 painting, 2,000 drawings and nearly 400 etchings. All of them were marked with avoidance of rigid formality, displayed by his contemporaries, compassion for people, and love for the most natural movements. Rembrandt is considered one of the greatest painters and printmakers of the seventeenth century and in the European art history, and the most prominent of Dutch artists. References: Bockemuhl, Michael (2006). From interpretation to observation: The Night Watch. History of Art: Baroque and Rococo - Rembrandt van Rijn. Retrieved November 25, 2007 from www.all-art.org/history252-21.html - 75k Encyclopedia Britannica (2006). Rembrandt van Rijn. History of Art: Baroque and Rococo. Retrieved November 25, 2007 from http://www.all-art.org/baroque/rembrandt7.html Heindorff, Ann Mette (2006). Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn. Art History on Stamps. Retrieved November 25, 2007 from arthistory.heindorffhus.dk/frame-Rembrandt01-General.htm - 27k Hunter James (1997). Danae. Encyclopedia Mythica. Retrieved November 25, 2007 from www.pantheon.org/articles/d/danae.html - 9k Read More