Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn was a painter and draftsman during the Baroque era and during the Netherlands’ Golden Age of the arts and science. His style was quite realistic in presentation, and he “regarded his drawings the way a novelist regards the ideas he jots down in his journal–as a purely private record of observations and feelings” (1). He studied at the prestigious University of Leiden even though he was a miller’s son, but soon dropped out to pursue a career in doing art (2). He had chosen to go to Amsterdam to pursue his goal of becoming an artist instead of going to Italy like most mentors recommend for those aspiring to be an artist.
In Amsterdam, he found great success. The Netherlands were different from Italy in that there wasn’t a rich or prominent figure (such as the church) to commission artists. Instead, there was a rising, influential merchant class (2) there to buy and sell paintings, allowing lower class people access to art such as Rembrandt’s.
The defining thing about Rembrandt’s work is the level of detail and how realistic his paintings can be. His attention to details, especially the small things, is what makes his paintings stand out from others. An example would be how he uses chiaroscuro, the use of dark and light values that create a stark contrast. Rembrandt takes the technique and applies in in a very subtle way in his paintings; he creates contrasts in the minute details of his work, such as using shadows underneath the eyes or in the folds of skin or clothing, to make the subject feel as though it was lifted from the paper. To get to this level, and to be able to do the paintings that he does, studying from life was vital, and Rembrandt took personal pleasure in using the people and his surrounds as a means to further his skills. This is where is sketches (etches as they were called in his time) play an important role.
Man Pulling a Rope, 1627-1628
A self-portrait, mid-1630s
A Woman Sitting Upon a Hillock, 1631
These three etchings differ in level of completeness, style, and purpose. Rembrandt often sketched from life, as he found inspiration in watching people move about. This is evident in the first etching where the man is pulling on the rope. The lines are quick and create a simple form, yet, they hold a feeling something beyond a quick doodle. The form holds a feeling of being ground in reality. His foot looks like an actual foot. The way the man is pulling on the rope gives the viewer the understand of just how heavy the load is; the viewer can almost feel the weight the man is pulling. All of this feeling packed into something that probably took Rembrandt no more than ten minutes, if even that, to complete.
The second etching is a self-portrait of Rembrandt in the early 1630s. Rembrandt often used himself as a model in his works, and later in his life created many self portraits of himself (2). The viewer here can also tell that this etching did not take Rembrandt long to make because of the kind of lines that were formed, their shape, and unrefined look. His hand is very simply drawn, and his coat is not very defined.
The last etching seems to be more of a finished piece than a quick sketch. More effort was put into the work, as the lines are cleaner and more refinded, and was done in ink instead of graphite. Looking at an artist’s sketches are almost just as important as looking at there finished works or paintings. Rembrandt could have never achieved his level of success if he did not draw from life as frequently as he did. He had a personal interest in drawing the things around him, as well was using himself as a model. He chose to stay in his home country because he believed he could achieve his full potential studying from his own people instead of those in Italy. This attitude is how greatness is made.
1. “Rembrandt’s Drawings.” Rembrandt Painting. Web. 22 Feb. 2015. <http://www.rembrandtpainting.net/rembrandt_drawings_start.htm>.
2. “Rembrandt.” The National Gallery. The National Gallery. Web. 22 Feb. 2015. <http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/artists/rembrandt>.
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