Biography of Rembrandt Tragich-na. Hu-dog-nik was dying in poverty, but before that he lost all his loved ones. His paintings were not appreciated during his lifetime, and the students betrayed him in the most difficult period. But the experience was not a layer of a great painter, the strength of his do-ha was so great that he could d-me-t-Xia and over his own go-res-ty, and even over my very death.
Age of Rembrandt
In the seventeenth century, Holland was one of the richest states in Europe. Various goods flocked to Amsterdam from all over the world. Bankers and merchants wanted to see works that would reflect their lives as truthfully as possible. In such conditions, painting was the most popular and developed form of art. Every self-respecting Dutchman believed that the picture must certainly be present in his home. And it was in such conditions that the creative biography of Rembrandt took shape.
Dutch painters
Some masters painted pictures, others - still lifes, the third were wonderful genre scenes. Still others preferred to portray nature. However, they all tried to portray reality truthfully and without embellishment. But, no matter how great the skill of the Dutch painters was, Rembrandt surpassed everyone.
Such people are born once a century, or even less often. Simplicity and humanity lived in his skill, but in himself there is a whole universe. Like no one else, Rembrandt was able to learn the inner world of a person and his complex emotional experiences. A short biography of this master is presented today in various sources, and after reading it, one wonders how this man could create his canvases when need forced them to give them for nothing, and his fellow writers contemptuously called him a "heretic in painting." Indeed, a real artist creates even when stones are thrown at him.
Lonely painter
He was never surrounded by admirers. Not a single poet sang it during his lifetime. This painter was not invited to official celebrations, and even during the days of grandiose celebrations, he was also forgotten. However, he was not upset. The usual favorite company of Rembrandt consisted of shopkeepers, burghers, peasants and artisans. Common people were extremely close to him. The artist's favorite place was one of the port taverns, where sailors, wandering actors and petty thieves scurried about. There he sat for hours, observing and making sketches. In the world of art, which is nothing more than a special reflection of reality, to see which is given only to a select few, Rembrandt stayed all his life. A biography, a summary of which represents only the most significant facts from life, is set out below. However, to feel the incredible skill of this genius personality, you need to see the works. After all, the artist's life is conveyed in his paintings.
The birth of a genius
In 1606, a son was born into the family of a wealthy Dutch miller named Harmenszoon, who became the sixth child. They called him Rembrandt. The mill was located near the city of the Rhine, and therefore Van Rhine was added to the name of all family members. The full name of one of the greatest figures in world painting is Rembrandt Harmenszoon Van Rijn.
A short biography of this person can be described in just a few words: continuous work and constant creative searches. Perhaps it was talent that saved him. There were so many losses and disappointments in the artist's life that, perhaps, only art could save him from despair. But before moving on to the tragic events in his life, a few words should be said about that time, which was distinguished by cloudlessness and unprecedented success in creativity. It is worth paying tribute to the fate of the great master. Rembrandt Van Rijn was not always lonely and unhappy.
short biography
As a child, Rembrandt studied Latin and other important sciences. Parents did not skimp on the education of their beloved son, because they dreamed that he would become an official or a famous scientist. However, the craving for drawing, which in the early years manifested itself in cute drawings, later, already in adolescence, brought Rembrandt to the workshop of one of the local painters. There he studied for only six months, and then opened his own.
Rembrandt's teachers were contemporaries and artists of the past. He mastered the technique of painting and engraving, studied the art of Italy from copies. One of the first paintings - "Anatomy Lesson Tulpa". We can say that it was from this canvas that Rembrandt the artist began his independent career. His biography says that the first few years after graduation from painting in his life there were only joyful events.
Saxia
At twenty-five, the artist moved to the capital, and three years later he married the mayor's daughter. The girl's name was Saxia. And she became the master's main muse. The image of his wife was immortalized by the famous portrait painter with extraordinary tenderness.
Family happiness coincided with a creative take-off - Rembrandt began to receive high-paying orders from wealthy people. And at the same time, he had many students. The artist was finally able to acquire his own house. whose brief biography is set out in the article, not only wrote a lot, but also revered the talent of other masters. He was engaged in collecting, collecting authentic shells, vases and antique busts. In his new house there was enough space for a workshop, and for living rooms, and for a special room where the works of Raphael, Dürer and Mantegna were kept.
So began his Rembrandt, whose short biography includes only one small period of recognition and success, namely the 30s. During this time, the artist painted over sixty portraits. The most famous of them is Danae. During the period of work on this picture, the painter was at the zenith of his glory.
But suddenly everything changed: three children died, his beloved wife died. He soon lost his mother and sisters. Rembrandt was left alone with his young son. Life cracked, which did not last until the end of his days.
Poverty
In the 50s, orders became less and less. Wealthy people no longer needed his portraits. In churches, paintings were also not required. This was explained by the fact that Protestantism nevertheless won out in Holland, whose representatives looked very negatively at the use of religious motives in the visual arts.
In addition, outstanding debts made themselves felt. A formal lawsuit was filed against Rembrandt. He was declared insolvent, and all the property was sold. But even after that, not all creditors were satisfied, and the court ruled that the paintings that will be created in the future should also go towards paying off the remaining debts. All this meant an absolutely beggarly existence.
The painter, who in the past knew fame and fortune, by the age of fifty turned into a lonely poor man forgotten by all. Although he still painted a lot, all his canvases were immediately taken away by creditors. The consolation was the second wife, with whom Rembrandt was only in a civil marriage, which was highly disapproved by society. However, marriage to this woman meant for him the loss of custody of his son.
So a new difficult period began, which Rembrandt Harmenszoon Van Rijn nevertheless endured with extraordinary courage. From that moment on, the artist's biography consists more of sorrows, and even if there were moments of enlightenment, it did not last long, and then some tragedy happened again.
Hendrickje
The image of the second wife is also captured on the canvases of the famous painter. She was inferior to the first in youth and beauty, but the artist looked at her with the eyes of love and portrayed her with great warmth. But the church condemned his way of life, and the daughter, which the second wife gave Rembrandt, was declared illegitimate. The plight led to the fact that the painter's family was forced to move to one of the poorest quarters of Amsterdam.
Rembrandt, whose biography contains many sad facts, knew true love. And Hendrickje was not only a caring and loving wife, but also was distinguished by extraordinary kindness. This woman was able to replace the mother to the son of Rembrandt from his first marriage.
For a while, they managed to improve their financial situation. In this the artist was helped by his son, who, together with his stepmother, opened an antique shop. But fate continued to test the artist. In 1663 he lost his beloved Hendrickje Rembrandt.
The biography and books dedicated to the life of the great master tell that there was another muse in his life. This woman was much younger than Rembrandt, but her unfortunate artist also survived.
The son died five years after the death of Hendrickje. With Rembrandt, only a daughter remained, who at that time was fourteen. But, in spite of everything, the painter did not stop there and did not give up. He also continued to paint, cut engravings ...
In 1669, the great painter died in the arms of his daughter. He left quietly and imperceptibly. And his talent was appreciated only after his death.
Creation
Rembrandt's biography is a life story of a martyr. His work is the pinnacle This master, however, was extremely alone among his fellow artists. His contemporaries did not recognize him. But the baroque art, and above all the work of Michelangelo, had a huge influence on the work of the Dutch painter.
The artist painted what he saw with his own eyes in real life. Rembrandt's biography says that his life developed in such a way that he was able to see the world around him without embellishment. He transferred the sad experience of contemplation to the canvas. But the way he did it was distinguished by extraordinary poetry. Twilight always reigns on Van Rijn's canvases. Delicate golden light makes the figures stand out from it.
Biblical motives
Religion played an important role in the work of the Dutch artist. It was here that he showed the originality of his skill. Biblical subjects were the main source of inspiration throughout the entire career of Rembrandt. Even when paintings on religious themes were no longer in demand, he painted them for himself, because he felt an irresistible need for this. In the canvases devoted to this topic, he put his soul, his prayer, as well as a deep reading of the Gospel.
The artist's recent work is amazing. And the first thing that catches your eye is the refinement of the style, the depth of penetration into the inner world of artistic images. Rembrandt's biography and his paintings seem to have no connection. The images on the canvases are so pacified that it is in no way combined with the difficult tragic fate of the author.
New genre
In recent years, the artist has often painted self-portraits. When looking at them, one gets the impression that Rembrandt was trying to unravel his own life. Looking in them, as in a mirror, he strove to know his fate and the plan of God, which so bizarrely led him through life. His self-portraits have become not only the pinnacle of creativity. There is nothing like this in world art. These canvases have no analogues in the history of portraiture.
The last self-portraits portray a person with a spiritualized face who heroically endures difficult trials and overcomes the bitterness of loss. Rembrandt is the founder of a kind. Such paintings convey not only the external appearance, but also the fate of a person, his inner world.
The biography and work of Rembrandt in the fifties were marked primarily by outstanding achievements in painting a portrait. During this period, his works were distinguished, as a rule, by an impressive size, monumentality of forms and calm, serene postures. The sitters often sat in pompous deep armchairs, their hands folded on their knees and their faces turned towards the viewer. One of the characteristic features of the great portraitist is the highlighting of the face and hands with light.
As a rule, the sitters were middle-aged people, sophisticated by hard life experience - old men and women with gloomy thoughts on their faces and backbreaking work on their hands. Such models provided the artist with the opportunity to brilliantly demonstrate not only the external signs of old age, but also the inner world of a person. In the unusually heartfelt portraits of the great Rembrandt, one can feel, with a long study, a person's life. When the master portrayed relatives, friends, unfamiliar old people, urban beggars, he could convey with amazing vigilance subtle emotional movements, a lively awe in his face and even a change of mood.
The legacy of this master is enormous. Rembrandt was distinguished by his incredible capacity for work: he created more than two hundred and fifty paintings, three hundred engravings and a thousand drawings. The great master died in poverty. It was only after death that the canvases created by Rembrandt began to be valued dearly.
A short biography and work of the Dutch painter is presented in this article. But this gives a very superficial understanding of the difficult path of a genius who played an outstanding role in the development of world fine art. Today, the master's canvases are in many museums around the world and are included in private collections.
😉 Hello dear readers! The article "Rembrandt: biography, creativity, facts and video" - about the life of the Dutch artist, the great master of chiaroscuro, the largest representative of the Golden Age of Dutch painting.
Biography of Rembrandt
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn was born in the middle of the summer of 1606 in Leiden, the son of a rather wealthy miller. The surname "van Rijn" is "from the river Rhine", it was there that the mills that belonged to the family were located.
Cornelia's mother was the daughter of a baker. Father and mother were the same age and equal in social status. Perhaps this was the reason that peace and tranquility reigned in the family. Although the house could not be called quiet, because a dozen tomboys were growing up here. The ninth was Rembrandt.
Parents have worked hard all their lives to raise their children. His father died at 62, and his mother survived him by ten years. The artist's three brothers became millers, and Rembrandt is the only one who received an education.
The 13-year-old has successfully passed the exams at Leiden University. In connection with his studies, he received a respite from being drafted into the army. At the same time, he begins to paint.
Self-portrait by Rembrandt at 23
Johannes Orpers - Mayor of Leiden, in one of the books, which was published in 1641, devoted several lines to the life of Rembrandt. This was a short biography about the artist. From which we learn that at the beginning Rembrandt was for about three years in training with Jacob van Svanenbürch.
Then in 1624 he left for Amsterdam for six months - to the painter of historical paintings P. Lastman. In 1625 the painter returned to his homeland and found a good friend in the person of Jan Lievens. For several years they created their creations together, and sometimes their paintings were so similar that it was almost impossible to identify the author.
Amsterdam
In January 1632, Rembrandt moved to Amsterdam. For three decades, the population of this city has tripled and reached the figure of 150 thousand. The painter reasoned that his career in this big city would go up much faster.
Previously, he wrote small works on religious themes and portraits. In Amsterdam, he worked on large orders and soon achieved popularity. For about two years, Rembrandt lived with Hendrik van Eilenbürch, an art dealer. He made friends with him immediately after his arrival.
Saskia
In the summer of 1634, the artist married Eilenbyurch's cousin Saskia. She was an orphan, but she had a good inheritance. Rembrandt at this time also managed to become a leading painter.
The young were passionately in love. They lived in Eilenbürch's house for several months, and then bought a magnificent new house for their family.
"Saskia as Flora" - a painting by Rembrandt, 1634
For 5 years Saskia gave birth to three children, but they died in infancy. In 1641 she gave birth to her 4th child. It was a boy named Titus by his parents. The son stayed alive, but the doctors could not save his mother, 29-year-old Saskia.
At this time, Rembrandt was working on the completion of the famous painting "Night Watch". But his life was mournful. He was immensely saddened by the sudden death of his beloved wife and could not work for a long time, all the while returning his thoughts to the tragedy.
"The night Watch". 1642. Oil on canvas. 363 × 437 cm
He had many orders for ceremonial portraits. But by constantly putting off work on them, he quickly lost customers. They chose not to wait for Rembrandt to finally pick up his magic brush, but gave orders to other artists.
Danae (1636-1647). Rembrandt has been working on the painting for 11 years!
Hendrickje Stoffels
The artist worked with great inspiration on his canvases, mainly based on biblical subjects. In difficult moments, Rembrandt often turned to religion, but it was necessary to think about his son, still very little.
He was forced to hire a nanny, Gertier Dierks. Gertier accused the artist of breaking his promise to marry her. This incident was settled - the artist had to fork out. There were many court hearings. As a result, she was found wrong and sentenced to 5 years.
Hendrickje Stoffels (1655)
Three years later, Rembrandt became friends with his young servant, Hendrickje Stoffels. Hendrickje gave birth to a son, who died as an infant, and a daughter, Cornelia. Apparently, the daughter was named after the master's mother.
The artist's financial situation was deplorable. He practically did not have high-paying orders for ceremonial portraits, but he spent huge sums on the collection. There were Renaissance paintings, weapons, busts, old costumes, oriental wonders ...
last years of life
In 1652 - 1654 Holland was at war with England, which completely depleted the state treasury. Trade almost ceased, which immediately affected the cost of works of art. Rembrandt sold part of the collection, but that didn't help.
In 1656, Rembrandt could no longer pay all the accumulated debts and almost ended up in prison. He managed to avoid this with the help of the so-called "transfer of debts" operation. The artist proved that debts have accumulated for an objective reason.
The artist sold the property and he was allowed to stay in the house he had previously owned until 1660. After that, the master rented inexpensive apartments in some poor city block.
Portrait of Titus, son of Rembrandt, 1657.
Titus has already grown up and he, together with his stepmother, created a company selling art works. But Rembrandt was never able to pay off all the debts, although everyone in the city respected him. In 1661 - 1662 Rembrandt was offered two highly paid orders: the painting "The Conspiracy of Julius Civilis" and the portrait of "Sindica" for the cloth makers' guild.
The last years of the painter were sad. In 1663 Hendrickje died, then Titus and his daughter-in-law. On October 4, 1669, Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn himself, one of the greatest painters, left this world. He was 63 years old.
In this video additional interesting information "Rembrandt: biography"
Additionally, on the topic "Rembrandt: Biography" - a film directed by Alexander Korda. It was released in 1936.
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (1606-1669) - Dutch painter, draftsman and engraver, great master of chiaroscuro, the largest representative of the golden age of Dutch painting.
Biography of Rembrandt van Rijn
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn was born in the Dutch city of Leiden in 1606 on 15 July. Rembrandt's father was a wealthy miller, his mother baked well, was the daughter of a baker. The surname "van Rijn" literally means "from the Rhine", that is, from the river Rhine, where Rembrandt's great-grandfathers had mills. Of the 10 children in the family, Rembrandt was the youngest. Other children followed in the footsteps of their parents, and Rembrandt chose a different path - artistic, and was educated at a Latin school.
At the age of 13, Rembrandt began to study drawing and also entered the city university. Age did not bother anyone then, the main thing at that time was knowledge at the level. Many scholars speculate that Rembrandt entered university not to study, but to get a reprieve from the army.
Rembrandt's first teacher was Jacob van Swanenbürch. The future artist spent about three years in his studio, then moved to Amsterdam to study with Peter Lastman.
From 1625 to 1626 Rembrandt returned to his hometown, and made acquaintances with artists, and some of Lastman's students.
Nevertheless, after much deliberation, Rembrandt decided that a career as an artist should be made in the capital of Holland, and again moved to Amsterdam, and married a wealthy city dweller Saskia van Eulenburg, and the painting "The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Tulp" brought the young painter universal recognition.
The work of Rembrandt van Rijn
The most prosperous decade in his life began for the master. He had many students (Rembrandt school).
During this period he wrote such masterpieces as "Self-portrait with Saskia" (1635) and "Danae" (1636).
Rembrandt's extremely cheerful art of the 30s. combines the experience of the Renaissance and Baroque masters and an innovative approach to classical subjects.
The period of success came to an abrupt end in 1642: the magnificent work "Night Watch" - a group portrait of the members of the Amsterdam Shooting Guild - was rejected by customers who did not appreciate the artist's innovations and subjected him to harsh criticism.
Rembrandt practically stopped receiving orders, almost all of his students left him. Saskia died in the same year.
Since the 40s. Rembrandt abandoned theatrical effects in his work, and the mystical, contemplative principle intensified in his painting. Often the artist turned to the image of his second wife - Hendrickje Stoffels.
The painting The Holy Family (1645), a series of self-portraits, and the best landscapes are marked with depth, calmness and emotional richness. But setbacks continued to haunt Rembrandt: in 1656 he was declared an insolvent debtor, the property was sold at auction, and the family moved to a modest house in the Jewish quarter of Amsterdam.
The painting “The Conspiracy of Julius Civilis” (1661) ordered by the Town Hall shared the fate of the “Night Watch”. In 1663, the artist buried his wife and son.
Despite the deterioration of his eyesight, Rembrandt continued to paint. A peculiar result of his work was the canvas "The Return of the Prodigal Son" (1668-1669).
Rembrandt's self-portraits captured almost all stages of his life and stages of his career. They are wonderful in themselves, because they allow us to trace the development of the master, and also because many later artists - from Sir Joshua Reynolds to Marc Chagall - tried to imitate the example of Rembrandt in the hope of understanding something about themselves.
Rembrandt's painting "Portrait of Jacob de Hein III" is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the most frequently stolen work of art in the world. The painting was stolen and found four times. She was even given the nickname "Rembrandt to Take Away." The portrait is kept in London, Dulwich Gallery.
Some of the paintings by the artist Rembrandt, including the famous "Danae", "The Sacrifice of Abraham" and "Haman's Disgrace", are kept in the State Hermitage (St. Petersburg). In 1985, a mentally ill person splashed sulfuric acid on Danae. The restoration went on for 20 long years. Now "Danae" can be seen only behind a thick layer of protective glass.
The Rembrandt Research Project is a group of scholars analyzing the great artist's legacy. The project has been in operation since 1968.
Until that time, it was believed that 800 paintings belonged to the artist's brush. The project refuted this figure: after careful research, it turned out that there are only about 350 of them.
The rest were painted by Rembrandt's students, as well as by artists influenced by Rembrandt. For example, the famous "Man in a Golden Helmet" from the Berlin Art Gallery, long considered the work of a master, turned out to be a painting by another unknown artist.
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If you find inaccuracies or want to supplement this article, send us information by email [email protected] site, we and our readers will be very grateful to you.
Rembrandt harmenszoon van rijn
The largest representative of the golden age, artist, engraver, great master of chiaroscuro - and all this in one name Rembrandt.
Rembrandt was born on July 15, 1606 in Leiden. This great Dutch artist was able to embody in his works the entire spectrum of human experiences with such an emotional intensity that the visual arts did not know before him.
Life
He grew up in the large family of a wealthy mill owner, Harmen Gerritzon van Rijn. Among other things, there were two more houses in the estate of the Rhine baths, and he also received a significant dowry from his wife Cornelia Neltier. The mother of the future artist was the daughter of a baker and was versed in cooking. The mother's family, even after the Dutch revolution, remained faithful to the Catholic faith.
In Leiden, Rembrandt attended a Latin school at the university, but did not like the exact sciences, he showed the greatest interest in painting. Realizing this fact, at the age of 13, his parents sent Rembrandt to study fine arts with the Leiden historical painter Jacob van Swanenbürch, who was a Catholic. Rembrandt's works, diverse in genre and subject matter, are imbued with the ideas of morality, spiritual beauty and dignity of an ordinary person, an understanding of the incomprehensible complexity of his inner world, the versatility of his intellectual wealth, the depth of his emotional experiences. Very little information has come down to us about Jacob, so historians and art critics cannot say for sure about the influence of Svanenberch on the creative manner of Rembrandt.
Then in 1623 he studied in Amsterdam with the then fashionable painter Peter Lastman, after which, returning to Leiden, in 1625, together with his fellow countryman Jan Lievens, opened his own workshop.
Peter Lastman completed an internship in Italy and specialized in historical, mythological and biblical subjects. When Rembrandt opened a workshop and began to recruit apprentices, in a short time he became significantly famous. If you look at the first works of the artist, you can immediately understand that Lastman's style - a passion for variegation and pettiness of execution, had a huge impact on the young artist. For example, his work "The Stoning of St. Stephen "(1629)," A scene from ancient history "(1626) and" The baptism of the eunuch "(1626), very bright, unusually colorful, Rembrandt seeks to carefully write out every detail of the material world. Almost all the heroes appear before the viewer dressed in fancy oriental outfits, sparkle with jewels, which creates an atmosphere of majesty, splendor, festivity
In 1628, the twenty-two-year-old artist was recognized as an "eminently famous" master, a renowned portrait painter.
The painting "Judas Returns the Silversmiths" (1629) - aroused an enthusiastic response from the famous art connoisseur Konstantin Huygens, Stadtholder's secretary Frederick Hendrik of Orange: "... this body trembling with pathetic trembling is what I prefer to good taste of all times."
Thanks to the connections of Constantine, Rembrandt soon acquired rich admirers of art: due to the mediation of Hagens, the Prince of Orange ordered several religious works from the artist, such as Christ before Pilate (1636).
Real success for the artist comes in Amsterdam. June 8, 1633 Rembrandt meets the daughter of a wealthy burgher Saskia van Eilenbürch and gains a strong position in society. The artist painted most of the canvases while in the capital of the Netherlands.
Amsterdam - a bustling port and industrial city, where goods and wonders from all over the world flocked, where people got rich on trade and banking deals, where outlaws of feudal Europe rushed in search of refuge and where the well-being of wealthy burghers coexisted with depressing poverty, binds strong ties with the artist ...
The Amsterdam period of Rembrandt's work began with overwhelming success, which brought him "The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Tulpa" (1632, The Hague, Mauritshuis), which changed the tradition of the Dutch group portrait. Rembrandt contrasted the usual demonstration of people of the general profession posing for the artist with the drama of a freely decided scene, the participants of which - members of the guild of surgeons, listening to their colleague, are united intellectually and spiritually by active involvement in the process of scientific research.
Rembrandt is inspired by the beauty of his beloved, so he often paints her portraits. Three days after the wedding, van Rijn painted a woman in a silver pencil wearing a wide-brimmed hat. Saskia appeared in the paintings of the Dutchman in a cozy home environment. The image of this plump woman appears on many canvases, for example, the mysterious girl in the painting "Night Watch" strongly resembles the artist's beloved.
The thirties in the life of Rembrandt were a period of fame, wealth and family happiness. He received many orders, was surrounded by students, was passionate about collecting works of Italian, Flemish and Dutch painters, antique sculpture, minerals, sea plants, ancient weapons, objects of oriental art; when working on paintings, the exhibits of the collection often served the artist as a prop.
Rembrandt's works of this period are extremely varied; they testify to the tireless, sometimes painful search for artistic comprehension of the spiritual and social essence of man and nature and demonstrate tendencies that relentlessly, step by step, bring the artist into conflict with society.
In portraits "for himself" and self-portraits, the artist freely experiments with composition and effects of chiaroscuro, changes the tonality of colors, dresses his models in fantastic or exotic clothes, varies poses, gestures, accessories ("Flora", 1634, St. Petersburg, State Hermitage Museum ).
In 1635, the famous painting based on the biblical theme "The Sacrifice of Abraham" was painted, which was appreciated in secular society.
In 1642, van Rijn received an order from the Shooting Society for a group portrait to decorate a new building with canvas. The painting was mistakenly called "Night Watch". It was stained with soot, and only in the 17th century did researchers come to the conclusion that the action unfolding on the canvas takes place in the daytime.
Rembrandt thoroughly depicted every detail of the musketeers in motion: as if at a certain moment time stopped when the militiamen left the dark courtyard for van Rijn to capture them on canvas.
The customers did not like that the Dutch painter departed from the canons that developed in the 17th century. Then the group portraits were ceremonial, and the participants were portrayed from the front without any statics.
According to scientists, this painting was the reason for the artist's bankruptcy in 1653, as it scared off potential clients.
The tragic changes in the personal fate of Rembrandt (the death of newborn children, mother, in 1642 - the illness and death of Saskia, who left him with a nine-month-old son Titus), deterioration in his financial situation due to his stubborn unwillingness to sacrifice freedom of spirit and creativity to please the changeable tastes of burghers, exacerbated and exposed the gradually brewing conflict between the artist and society.
Information about the private life of Rembrandt in the 1640s. few have survived in the documents. Of the students of this period, only Nicholas Mas of Dordrecht is known. Apparently, the artist continued to live on a grand scale, as before. The late Saskia's family expressed concern over how he disposed of her dowry. Titus's nanny, Gertier Diercks, sued him for breaking a promise to marry; to settle this incident, the artist had to fork out.
In the late 1640s, Rembrandt became friends with his young servant, Hendrickje Stoffels, whose image appears in many portrait works of this period: (Flora (1654), Bathing Woman (1654), Hendrickje at the Window (1655)). The parish council condemned Hendrickje for "sinful cohabitation" when, in 1654, her daughter Cornelia was born with the artist. During these years, Rembrandt departed from themes that had a grandiose national or universal sound.
The artist worked for a long time on engraved portraits of the burgomaster Jan Six (1647) and other influential burghers. All the engraving techniques and techniques he knew were used in the manufacture of the elaborate etching Christ Healing the Sick, better known as the One Hundred Guilder Leaf, for such a huge price for the 17th century it was once sold. He worked on this etching, striking with the subtlety of the cut-and-paste game, for seven years, from 1643 to 1649.
In 1653, experiencing financial difficulties, the artist transferred almost all of his property to his son Titus, after which he declared bankruptcy in 1656. After the sale in 1657-58. houses and property (an interesting catalog of Rembrandt's art collection has been preserved), the artist moved to the outskirts of Amsterdam, to the Jewish quarter, where he spent the rest of his life.
The death of Titus in 1668 was one of the last blows of fate for the artist; he himself passed away a year later.
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn died in October 1669. He was 63 years old. He was old, sick and poor. The notary did not have to spend a lot of time compiling an inventory of the artist's property. The inventory was brief: "three shabby sweatshirts, eight handkerchiefs, ten berets, painting supplies, one Bible."
Paintings
Return of the prodigal son
The famous painting "The Return of the Prodigal Son", one of the last works of Rembrandt. It was written in the year of his death, and became the pinnacle of the manifestation of his talent.
This is the largest painting by Rembrandt on a religious theme. Painting by Rembrandt on the plot of the New Testament parable of the prodigal son.
We find the parable of the prodigal son in the Gospel of Luke. She tells about a young man who left his father's house and squandered his inheritance. In idleness, debauchery and drunkenness, he spent his days until he found himself in the barnyard, where he ate from the same trough with pigs. In a desperate situation and complete poverty, the young man returns to his father, ready to become his last slave. But instead of contempt, he finds a royal welcome, instead of anger - an all-forgiving, deep and tender fatherly love.
1669 year. Rembrandt plays a human drama in front of the viewer. The paints lie on the canvas in thick strokes. They are dark. The artist does not care about secondary characters, even if there are a lot of them. Attention is again riveted on the father and son. The old father, hunched over with grief, faces the viewer. In this face there is pain, and eyes tired of crying out tears, and the happiness of a long-awaited meeting. The son has his back turned to us. He buried himself as an infant in the royal robe of his father. We don't know what his face expresses. But cracked heels, a vagrant's bare skull, poor attire say enough. As well as the hands of the father, squeezing the shoulders of the young man. Through the peace of these hands, forgiving and supporting, Rembrandt for the last time tells the world a universal parable about wealth, passions and vices, repentance and forgiveness. “… I will get up, go to my father and say to him: Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you, and am no longer worthy to be called your son; accept me as your mercenary. He got up and went to his father. And while he was still far away, his father saw him and took pity; and running, fell on his neck and kissed him. "
In addition to the father and son, 4 more characters are depicted in the picture. These are dark silhouettes that are hardly distinguishable against a dark background, but who they are remains a mystery. Some called them "brothers and sisters" of the protagonist. It is characteristic that Rembrandt avoids conflict: the parable speaks of the jealousy of an obedient son, and the harmony of the picture is not disturbed by anything.
Van Gogh very accurately said about Rembrandt: “You have to die several times in order to paint like this ... Rembrandt penetrates into the secret so deeply that he speaks about objects for which there are no words in any language. That is why Rembrandt is called: a magician. And this is not an easy craft. "
The night Watch
The title by which the group portrait of Rembrandt is traditionally known "Speech by the rifle company of Captain Frans Banning Kok and Lieutenant Willem van Ruutenbürg", written in 1642.
The Dutch master's canvas is fraught with many "surprises". Let's start with the fact that the usual name of the picture does not correspond to reality: the patrol depicted on it is actually not at all at night, but very daytime. It's just that Rembrandt's work was varnished several times, which is why it darkened a lot. In addition, for almost 100 years (from the beginning of the 18th to the beginning of the 19th century), the canvas adorned one of the halls of the Amsterdam City Hall, where it hung right in front of the fireplace, covered with soot year after year. It is not surprising that by the beginning of the 19th century the name "Night Watch" was firmly established behind the painting: by this time the history of its creation had been completely forgotten, and everyone was sure that the master had depicted precisely the dark time of the day. Only in 1947, during the restoration at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, where the painting is located to this day, it turned out that its color is incomparably lighter than it was commonly believed. Moreover, the short shadows cast by the characters indicate that the affair takes place between noon and 2 pm. However, the restorers did not remove all the layers of the dark varnish, fearing to damage the paint, so even now the "Night Watch" is rather dim.
The real name of the painting is "Speech by the rifle company of Captain Frans Banning Kok and Lieutenant Wilhem van Reitenburg." This is a group portrait of a musketeer militia in one of the districts of Amsterdam. From 1618 to 1648, the Thirty Years' War was going on in Europe, and the inhabitants of Dutch cities took up arms in order to defend their homes. Rembrandt's creation, along with portraits of other rifle companies, was supposed to decorate the main hall in Kloveniersdolen - the headquarters of the city riflemen. But the customers were disappointed: Rembrandt did not get a monumental ceremonial portrait, but a genre painting in which they could hardly find their own faces, often half hidden by other characters. Still would! After all, the artist, in addition to 18 customers (each of whom laid out about 100 gold guilders for his portrait - a very impressive amount at that time) squeezed 16 more people onto the canvas! Who they are is unknown.
Museum - Amsterdam History Museum?
Three crosses
One of the most famous etchings by Rembrandt, it has five states. Only the third was signed and dated; therefore, Rembrandt considered the rest intermediate. The fifth condition is very rare, only five are known.
The etching depicts the dramatic moment of Christ's death on the cross of Calvary, described in the gospels. In this etching, Rembrandt used the technique of a chisel and a dry needle on an unprecedented scale, which increased the contrast of the image.
On December 2, 2008 at Christie's auction this etching (IV state) was sold for 421,250 pounds sterling.
Descent from the cross
In 1814, Alexander I y of Empress Josephine acquired the Malmaison Gallery, which belonged to her. Some of the paintings came from the famous Kassel Gallery, including The Descent from the Cross. Previously, these canvases were the property of Madame de Roover in Delft and, together with other paintings from her collection, were bought by the Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel Ludwig VII. In 1806, his gallery was seized by Napoleon and donated to Josephine.
The successor to the Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel Ludwig VII, a former ally of Alexander I, presented a demand to the emperor in 1815 for the return of the paintings captured by Napoleon. This demand was resolutely rejected by Alexander I, who paid money for the paintings and in every possible way showed Josephine's attention to her daughter Hortense. In 1829, Hortense, who at that time held the title of Duchess of Saint-Leu, bought thirty paintings from the Malmaison Gallery.
The “Descent from the Cross” theme had a great iconographic tradition in European art. Her highest achievement was considered an altarpiece painting by Rubens in Antwerp Cathedral, widely known from Worsterman's engraving.
Rembrandt's creative thought wanders somewhere near this tradition, using it and at the same time constantly choosing other paths. Unusual for the previous development of European art, they are highly characteristic of Rembrandt's personal creative manner, and it is not for nothing that "Descent from the Cross" outwardly so strongly resembles "The Disbelief of the Apostle Thomas."
Rubens portrayed the sublime sorrow of a group of majestic and beautiful people for a majestic and beautiful hero; Rembrandt has a hectic mass night scene. Numerous figures alternately retreat into darkness, then fall into a ray of light, and it seems that the crowd moves, lives, grieving for the crucified and pitying his mother. There is nothing perfect in the appearance of people, many of them are rude, ugly. Their feelings are very strong, but these are the feelings of ordinary people, not enlightened by the sublime catharsis that is in Rubens' painting.
The dead Christ is a man like them; it is because of the power of their grief that his suffering and death take on special significance. The key to the content of the picture is, perhaps, not so much Christ as the person supporting him and pressing his cheek to him.
From an artistic point of view, the fractional, restless composition is inferior to the famous painting by Rubens, and to some of the works of Rembrandt himself, executed in the same years. For example, the less significant in its content "The Disbelief of the Apostle Thomas" seems to be outwardly more harmonious and holistic. However, in The Descent from the Cross, Rembrandt's understanding of biblical and evangelical themes is clearer.
The work of the young Rembrandt differs from its prototype in the most basic features. First of all, it was not created either formally or essentially as a prayer altar image. Its cabinet size is not addressed to the perception of the crowd, but to individual experience. This appeal to the feelings and consciousness of one person, the establishment of close emotional contact with the viewer forced the artist to create a completely new system of artistic means and techniques. Rembrandt saw the scene of the Gospel legend as a tragic real event, fundamentally depriving it of mystical and heroic pathos.
Striving for the utmost sincerity and truthfulness of the image, Rembrandt showed a close crowd of people near the cross, shocked with grief, looking for kinship unity with each other in the face of a terrible death. Brown-olive tonal coloring united the entire composition, and the luminous flux highlighted its main semantic center dramatically. The greatest depth of suffering is embodied in the image of the Mother of God, who has fallen unconscious with her thin, haggard face of a toiler. The second group of mourners is located at the left end of the spatial diagonal - women reverently lay the shroud, fulfilling their direct duty towards the deceased. Supported by the old man, the drooping body of Christ - the embodiment of tortured human flesh - evokes, above all, a feeling of deep compassion.
Jewish bride
One of the last and most mysterious paintings by Rembrandt. The name was given to it in 1825 by the Amsterdam collector Van der Hope. He mistakenly believed that it depicted a father giving his Jewish daughter a necklace for her wedding. Perhaps this is a custom-made portrait, but the clothes of the characters are clearly similar to the old, biblical ones, so the names were suggested as “Artaxerxes and Esther”, “Jacob and Rachel”, “Abram and Sarah”, “Boaz and Ruth”.
Saskia as Flora
A painting by Rembrandt, painted in 1634, which probably depicts the artist's wife Saskia van Eilenbuch in the image of the ancient Italian goddess of flowers, blossom, spring and the fruits of the field Flora.
In 1633, Saskia van Eilenbürch became the bride of Rembrandt van Rijn. A charming portrait of young Saskia dressed as Flora is a mute but eloquent witness to this “time of spring and love” by the brilliant painter.
The pensive, but undoubtedly happy face of the girl is quite consistent with the feelings of the bride. She is no longer a playful child, carelessly looking at God's world. She has a serious task ahead of her: she has chosen a new path and she has to change her mind and feel much, much before she enters adulthood. The headdress and wand, entwined with flowers, undoubtedly indicate Flora, the ancient Roman goddess of spring. The goddess's outfit is painted with amazing skill, but the true greatness of Rembrandt's talent is manifested in the expression of tenderness that the artist gave to her face.
The beloved wife brought the light of happiness and heartfelt contentment into the lonely dwelling of a modest artist. Rembrandt loved to dress Saskia in velvet, silk and brocade, according to the custom of that time, he showered with diamonds and pearls, lovingly watching her lovely, young face win from a shiny outfit
Museum - State Hermitage
Style
Deeply humanistic in its essence and perfect in its unique artistic form, Rembrandt's work has become one of the summits of the development of human civilization. Rembrandt's works, diverse in genre and subject matter, are imbued with the ideas of morality, spiritual beauty and dignity of an ordinary person, an understanding of the incomprehensible complexity of his inner world, the versatility of his intellectual wealth, the depth of his emotional experiences. Containing many unsolved mysteries, the paintings, drawings and etchings of this remarkable artist conquer with insightful psychological characteristics of the characters, philosophical acceptance of reality, convincing justification of unexpected artistic decisions. His interpretation of plots from the Bible, ancient myths, ancient legends and the past of his native country as really meaningful events in the history of man and society, deeply felt collisions of life of specific people opened the way for a free and multi-valued interpretation of traditional images and themes.
L jubov Rembrandt
The famous muse of Rembrandt Saskia was the youngest daughter of the Mayor of Leeuwarden. This white-skinned red-haired beauty grew up in a large and very wealthy family. When the girl was 12 years old, the mother of the family died. But the girl still did not know anything about the refusal, and when the time came, she became a very enviable bride.
A significant meeting between the artist and the young lady took place in the house of the girl's cousin, the artist Hendrike van Eilenburg, who was also an antiques dealer. Rembrandt is literally struck by the girl: glowing delicate skin, golden hair ... Add to this the ability to conduct a casual conversation. Jokingly, she invited a famous painter to paint her portrait. And that’s all that is needed: Saskia is an ideal model for Rembrandt stories in dark and muted colors.
Rembrandt begins to paint a portrait. He meets with Saskia not only in sessions. Changing his principle, he tries to be on pleasure walks and parties. When work on the portrait was completed and frequent meetings stopped, Rembrandt realizes: this is the one he wants to marry. In 1633, Saskia van Eulenburg became the artist's bride, and on July 22, 1634, the long-awaited wedding took place.
The marriage with Saskia opens the way for the artist to high society. The burgomaster's father left his darling a colossal inheritance: 40,000 florins. Even for a small part of this amount, it was possible to live comfortably for many, many years.
The happy and loving spouses began to equip the common house. It soon began to resemble a museum. The walls were decorated with engravings by Michelangelo and paintings by Raphael. Saskia agreed to everything, she loved her husband very much. And he, in turn, showered her with jewelry, paid for the most exquisite toilets. And, of course, he tried to capture his favorite image. Rembrandt, one might say, became the chronicler of his family life. In the first days of the couple's honeymoon, the famous "Self-portrait with Saskia on his knees" was written.
In 1635, the first son was born in the family, but he lived for a very short time, and this was a terrible blow for the young mother.
For a long time she did not want to part with the body of her son, drove everyone away from herself, not letting go of the dead child. The unhappy mother walked around the house with him, cradling and calling him all the tender names that she and her husband called Rembrantus in the first happy days.
Rembrandt was aware that, with the exception of hours spent at the easel, he could only live near Saskia. Only with her does he feel like a man: love is the source of life, and he loves only Saskia, and no one else.
After the death of Rembrantus, Saskia lost her children twice more at birth. Only the fourth child, Titus, born in 1641, was able to survive the difficult years of infancy. The boy was named after the late Titia, Saskia's sister.
However, the constant childbirth had a detrimental effect on Saskia's health. The appearance of purely landscape images at the end of the 1630s is sometimes explained by the fact that at that time, due to the illness of his wife, Rembrandt had been with her a lot outside the city. The artist painted relatively few portraits in the 1640s.
Saskia van Eulenburg died in 1642. She was only thirty years old. In the coffin, she looked like living ...
At this time, Rembrandt was working on the famous painting "Night Watch".
House-Museum of Rembrandt
Art Museum on Jodenbreestraat Street in the Jewish Quarter of Amsterdam. The museum opened in 1911 in the house that Rembrandt acquired at the height of his fame in 1639 and where he lived until his bankruptcy in 1656.
For almost 20 years of his life (from 1639 to 1658) on Jodenbrestrat Street, Rembrandt managed to create many wonderful works, become famous, collect a unique collection of paintings and rarities from all over the world, acquire students, waste the fortune of his first wife, lose main customers, incur huge debts and put the house under the hammer.
Rembrandt also had to sell off much of his lavish collection of paintings and antiques, including works by great European artists, Roman busts of emperors, and even Japanese battle armor, and move into a more modest home. Having survived both wives and even his own son, Rembrandt died in poverty and loneliness.
Two and a half centuries later, in 1911, by order of Korlev Wilhelmina, the house was turned into a museum, which, unlike, for example, the Van Gogh Museum, is, first of all, not an art gallery, but the restored apartments of the great artist: a huge kitchen on on the first floor, the reception room, the master's bedroom and the guest bedroom are on the second, the largest room of the mansion - the studio - is on the third, and in the attic are the workshops of his students.
It was possible to restore the interior with the help of an inventory of property drawn up by a notary during the sale of all the artist's property at an auction, and drawings by the artist himself, on which he displayed his dwelling.
Here you can see his personal belongings, furniture of the 17th century and other interesting exhibits such as a beautiful etching machine or overseas rarities.
The museum exhibits almost all of the great Rembrandt's engravings - 250 out of 280, magnificent self-portraits of the artist, drawings depicting his parents, wife and son Titus, wonderful views of Amsterdam and its environs.
Even the museum toilet requires special attention: there you can see Rembrandt's drawings on a relevant topic: a woman crouching in the bushes and a man standing in a pose typical of this institution.
Rembrandt - everything you need to know about the famous Dutch painter updated: November 13, 2017 by the author: site
Art makes our life more interesting and beautiful. There are people who will remain in memory for many centuries, whose work will be inherited by all new generations.
After reading this article, you will become closer to understanding the heritage of world art, which was left behind by the great master - the artist Rembrandt van Rijn.
Biography
Today he is called the master of shadows, as well as the person who could put absolutely any emotion on the canvas. Next, let's get acquainted with the life path that he had to go through.
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (1606-1669) was born in the Netherlands, in the city of Leiden. From a young age he was interested in painting, and from the age of 13 he studied fine arts with Jacob van Swanenbürch, who was a historical painter.
After that, it is known that Rembrandt at the age of 17 studied with Peter Lastman, having arrived in Amsterdam. His teacher specialized in biblical motives and mythology.
Went about his business
By the age of 21, Rembrandt van Rijn, together with his friend, opened a drawing workshop and conducted regular student recruiting and visual arts classes. Just a few years passed, and he became popular among those around him as a master of his craft.
Together with their friend Leavens, they were already creating masterpieces at that time, and they were noticed by Constantin Huygens, who was the secretary of the Prince of Orange. He called the painting with Judas one of the best works of art of antiquity. He played a large role in the development of an artist, helping to establish contacts with wealthy clients.
New life in Amsterdam
By 1631, Rembrandt van Rijn had already completely moved to live in Amsterdam. Life in this city was full of orders from significant clients who saw in it a great young artist. At this time, his friend went to study in England, where he also tried to achieve success under the auspices of a new teacher.
Meanwhile, the artist begins to get carried away with the depiction of faces. He is interested in the facial expressions of each person, he tries to experiment with the drawn heads of people. Rembrandt van Rijn was able to accurately convey everything that the eyes of the person from whom he painted the masterpiece spoke.
It was the portraits that brought the artist commercial success at that time. In addition, he was fond of self-portraits. You can find many of his works, where he portrayed himself in imaginary costumes and robes, interesting poses.
Glory time
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn gained universal recognition in Amsterdam after painting The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Tulpa in 1632, where he depicted surgeons whom the doctor taught to dissect on the example of a corpse.
If you look at this picture, you will notice the fine line with which the master depicted the facial expressions of each of them. These are not just the faces of people, he managed to convey the general alert emotion of a whole group of students.
And the way he portrayed the shadow in the picture amazed many experts of the time. They unanimously began to say that Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn had matured along with his paintings.
We can say that this time is considered one of the most favorable in the life of a young artist. After his marriage to Saskia van Eilenbürch in 1634, orders fell on his head with such a speed with which he could not have time to paint.
In the first years of his life in the new city, the young Rembrandt van Rijn managed to write more than 50 paintings. The pictures were special and bright, writers have repeatedly recalled his creations. For example, Jost van den Vondel, the then famous poet and playwright, paid tribute to the author in his poems about his portrait of Cornelis Ansloh.
At that time, he had enough money to buy his own mansion. Carried away by art and studying the works of classics and other masters, he filled his house with famous works of both his contemporaries and the works of ancient times.
Family life
Today's art critics celebrate the good works of the time by Rembrandt van Rijn. The paintings of his wife Saskia in different clothes and against different backgrounds indicate that the master has fully matured and began to create his art on canvases.
There was also grief - the three children he had during his marriage died at a young age. But in 1641, the couple had a son, Titus, who was an outlet for young parents. That turbulent time was perfectly imprinted on the artist's painting “The Prodigal Son in a Tavern”.
An unpleasant event
As in the early years, the imagination of the great artist has always pushed him to create paintings with certain biblical subjects. Just what is his painting "The Sacrifice of Abraham", which he painted in 1635! Emotions and moods are so clearly conveyed, you start to worry that it is worth blinking, as the knife immediately plunges into the flesh.
In contemporary art, this feeling can only be conveyed to photographers who take a clear shot in motion. Indeed, his ability to reflect the atmosphere of situations processed by the imagination of the great master is striking.
The beginning of the problems
The artist's failures did not end with the death of his wife. The artist's views gradually changed. The young Rembrandt van Rijn, whose work admired his contemporaries, gradually disappeared.
In 1642 he received an excellent offer to paint a portrait of the Musketeers, which was to be placed in the newly built building of the Shooting Society. It was one of the largest paintings ever painted by the master - it reached four meters.
According to the vision of the customers, the artist was supposed to create an ordinary portrait of a soldier that would radiate strength and confidence. Unfortunately, the artist Rembrandt van Rijn completed the task in his own way.
As you can see in the painting "Night Watch", which is given below, his work can hardly be called a portrait. The canvas depicts a whole scene of the preparation of a rifle company for a sudden march.
Moreover, you can see how the movement has frozen in the picture. This is a separate shot from the life of a soldier. There was a lot of resentment from customers about this. Some of the Musketeers were pushed into the background, while others were even captured in an awkward pose.
In addition, the sharp play of light and shadow, which, perhaps, no one could so brightly and boldly depict on canvas, also did not arouse admiration.
After that, Rembrandt van Rijn, whose works were considered one of the best yesterday, began to become uninteresting to a high-ranking public. And this meant at that time that no one would make expensive orders from him.
Now imagine a person who lived his whole life on a grand scale, and then suddenly lost his source of income. Can he already give up his usual life?
Modernity demanded detailing of paintings
Students gradually leave him. Rembrandt's vision gradually becomes inconsistent with the fashion of that time - new trends went towards maximum detail. That is, if an artist began to paint as he did in his youth, then there would be a considerable demand for him.
But life is unpredictable, just like a real creative person. His hand became hard, he liked to play with the shadow, blurring the clear edges of objects.
The inability to make good money affected his financial situation. Considering that his late wife was a lady from a wealthy family, her dowry passed completely into his possession. And, having no earnings, he simply spent it, or “burned it out,” on his own needs.
At the end of the forties of the 17th century, he became friends with his servant Hendrickje. She can be seen in some of his paintings. At that time, the laws were strict in relation to family ties, and his muse was convicted by the court when they had baby Cornelia.
It is difficult to find famous canvases from this period of the artist's life. He gradually moved away from many containing motives and scenes that he wrote in the recent past.
But he, as a creative person, showed himself in other areas. At that time, he was already masterfully performing etchings. It took him 7 years to complete a masterpiece called "Christ Healing the Sick."
He was able to sell it for 100 guilders, large enough for that time. considered the best of those that Rembrandt could create.
Rembrandt's sunset
The elderly artist was increasingly faced with material problems. In 1656, he became completely bankrupt, passing all his inheritance to his son. There was nothing to live on. A year later, he had to sell his estate. The proceeds helped him move to the quiet outskirts of Amsterdam. He settled down in the Jewish quarter.
The closest person to him during his old age was his son. But Rembrandt was not lucky, because he lived to see his death. He could no longer endure the blows of fate, and a year later he also died.
Today's Rembrandt
Art never dies. Creators live in their works, in particular, artists are always part of their canvases. The essence of a person is conveyed in his style and skill of painting.
Today, Rembrandt van Rijn is considered an artist with a capital letter and is recognized by all critics. His work is highly regarded. For example, in 2009 at an auction his painting “Half-length portrait of an unknown man standing akimbo”, painted in 1658, was sold for a record price of 41 million US dollars (in terms of the exchange rate of that time).
Also appreciated was his painting "Portrait of an Elderly Woman", which in 2000 was sold for about 32 million dollars. This canvas does not even dare to call this canvas a "picture". It just looks like a big photo - only a great master could detail the face so much.
People like Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn are truly inspiring. And it is not necessary to become an artist, you just need to do what you like, and most importantly - from the heart.