The most popular paintings by Rembrandt. Saskia as Flora

The future reformer of fine arts was born into the family of a wealthy miller in Leiden. Boy with early childhood showed interest in painting, so at the age of 13 he was apprenticed to Leiden artist Jacob van Swanenburch. Rembrandt later studied with the Amsterdam painter Pieter Lastman, who specialized in historical, mythological and biblical subjects.

Already in 1627, Rembrandt managed to open his own workshop with his friend Jan Lievens - the young painter, who was barely 20 years old, began to recruit students himself.

Already in early works Rembrandt clearly shows a special painting style beginning to take shape - the artist strives to paint his characters as emotionally as possible, literally every centimeter of the canvas is filled with drama. At the very beginning of his journey, the future unsurpassed master of working with chiaroscuro realized the power of this technique for conveying emotions.

In 1631, Rembrandt moved to Amsterdam, where he was greeted extremely enthusiastically; art connoisseurs compared the young artist’s painting style with the works of Rubens himself - by the way, Rembrandt was happy to take cues from much of this artist’s aesthetics.

The period of work in the Dutch capital became a landmark for the genre of portraiture in Rembrandt’s work - it was here that the master painted many sketches of women and male heads, carefully working out every detail, comprehending all the subtleties of facial expressions human face. The artist paints wealthy townspeople - his fame spreads quickly and becomes the key to commercial success - and also works a lot on self-portraits.

Rembrandt's fate - both personal and creative - was not easy. Early favored by fame and success, the talented painter also suddenly lost rich clients who failed to realize the revolutionary courage of his works. Rembrandt's legacy was truly appreciated only two centuries later - in the 19th century, realist artists were inspired by the paintings of this master, one of the brightest representatives of the golden age of Dutch painting.

1. "Danae" (1633-1647)

Even if you know nothing about Rembrandt and are not interested in painting at all, this painting is definitely familiar to you. The canvas, stored in the St. Petersburg Hermitage, was almost lost forever in 1985 due to a vandal who doused it with sulfuric acid and then cut the canvas with a knife.

The painting, which depicts a naked girl lying on a bed in the rays of unearthly light, was painted by Rembrandt for his home - the theme was the famous ancient Greek myth about the beautiful Danae, the future mother of the winner Medusa Perseus, and Zeus the Thunderer. The very appearance of Danae posed a riddle to creativity researchers, which was only recently solved: it is known that Rembrandt’s model was his wife Saskia van Uylenburch, but the Danae that has come down to us does not at all resemble the artist’s wife. An X-ray study of the canvas showed that Rembrandt partially rewrote Danae's face after the death of his wife - and made it similar to the face of his second lover, the nanny of his son Titus, Gertje Dirks. Cupid hovering over Danae also initially looked different - the winged god laughed, but in the final version there was suffering frozen on his face.

After the attack on the painting in 1985, it took 12 years to restore it. The loss of painting amounted to 27%; they worked on restoring Rembrandt’s masterpiece the best masters- however, there were no guarantees of success. Fortunately, the canvas was saved; now the painting is reliably protected by armored glass.

2. "The night Watch", (1642)

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The colossal, almost four-meter canvas became truly fatal in the career of its creator. Correct name paintings - "Performance of the rifle company of Captain Frans Banning Kok and Lieutenant Willem van Ruytenburg." It became the “Night Watch” after art historians discovered it, forgotten for two centuries. It was decided that the painting depicted musketeers during a night service - and only after restoration it became clear that under the layer of soot there was a completely different original coloring - the shadows speak eloquently about this - the action on the canvas takes place around 2 o'clock in the afternoon.

The work was commissioned by Rembrandt from the Shooting Society, a civil militia unit of the Netherlands. A group portrait of six companies was to decorate the new building of the society - Rembrandt was asked to paint the rifle company of Captain Frans Banning Cock. The artist was expected to do a traditional ceremonial portrait - all the characters in a row - but he decided to depict the musketeers in motion. Bold composition, where each figure is as dynamic as possible, did not find understanding from the customer - dissatisfaction was caused by the fact that some of those depicted were clearly visible, while others were in the background. "The Night Watch" literally broke Rembrandt's career - it was after this painting that regular rich clients turned away from the painter, and his painting style changed radically.

By the way, the fate of this painting is no less tragic than that of “Danae”. To begin with, in the 18th century it was completely barbarically cut to fit into new hall Shooting Society. So the musketeers Jacob Dirksen de Roy and Jan Brugman disappeared from the picture. Fortunately, a copy of the original painting has been preserved. “Night Watch” was attacked by vandals three times: the first time a large piece of canvas was cut out, the second time the painting was stabbed 10 times, and the third time it was doused with sulfuric acid.

Now the canvas is kept in the Rijksmuseum - the National Museum of Amsterdam. You can look at this picture for many hours - all the characters are depicted in such detail on the huge canvas, both “custom-made” (actually, there are 18 musketeers) and those added by Rembrandt at his own discretion (16 figures, the most mysterious one is the little girl in the place of the “golden sections" of the painting)

3. "The Prodigal Son in the Tavern" (1635)

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This self-portrait of the artist with his beloved wife Saskia on his lap is kept in the Old Masters Gallery in Dresden (also known as Dresden Gallery). There is no doubt that the artist painted this picture being absolutely happy. It was during this period of his life that Rembrandt worked a lot and fruitfully, was popular, received high fees for his work, among his customers were famous and wealthy people. The master reworked the plot from the Gospel of Luke in the spirit of the times - the prodigal son is dressed in a camisole and wide-brimmed hat with a feather, the harlot on his lap is also dressed in the fashion of the time. By the way, this is the only painting of a self-portrait of the artist together with his wife - Rembrandt made another image of himself and Saskia in the same pictorial space using the engraving technique in 1638. Despite the overall cheerful tone of the picture, the author did not forget to remind you that sooner or later you will have to pay for everything in this life - this is eloquently evidenced by the slate board in the background, where very soon the reveler will be billed. Could Rembrandt have guessed how big his own retribution for his talent would be?

4. "Return" prodigal son"(1666-1669)

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This is the largest painting by Rembrandt on religious theme, it is kept in the Hermitage. The semantic center of the picture is strongly shifted to the side, the main figures are highlighted with light, the remaining characters are covered in shadow, which makes it impossible to make a mistake when reading what is depicted. By the way, all Rembrandt’s paintings have one thing in common: important detail- despite the general clarity of the main plot, each painting conceals mysteries that art historians are unable to solve. Like the girl from The Night's Watch, Return of the Prodigal Son features characters shrouded in mystery. There are four of them - someone conventionally calls them “brothers and sisters” of the main character. Some researchers interpret female figure behind the column as a second, obedient son - although traditionally this role is assigned to the man in the foreground. This man, bearded, with a staff in his hands, calls out fewer questions- in the Gospel of Luke, the dean's brother came running to meet the prodigal relative straight from the field, but here he is depicted rather as a noble wanderer, perhaps even the Eternal Jew. By the way, it is possible that Rembrandt depicted himself this way - self-portraits, as you know, are not uncommon in his paintings.

5. "Saskia as Flora" (1634)

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Majority female images Rembrandt's canvases from the period 1934-1942 were painted with the artist's beloved wife Saskia van Uylenburch. In the image ancient goddess In the spring of Flora, the master depicted Saskia three times - the portrait we are considering was created in the year of their wedding - it is clear to the naked eye that Rembrandt idolized his wife, admired her and put all his tenderness into the painting.

Saskia was 22 years old at the time of her marriage; at 17 she was left an orphan. An incident brought her together with her future husband - she came to Amsterdam to visit her cousin, the wife of the preacher Johann Cornelis Silvius, who knew Rembrandt. The wedding took place on June 10, 1634. In 1942 - just a year after the birth of the long-awaited son Titus - Saskia passed away.

Flora-Saskia is the embodiment of youth, freshness and chastity; there is so much charming shyness and girlish freshness in her appearance. Rembrandt skillfully combined pastoral and historical portrait. By the way, of the three Floras painted with his wife (the other two paintings were created in 1935 and 1941), the first most refers to antiquity, the other two portraits hint at the myth only with barely noticeable details. "Saskia as Flora" is kept in the Hermitage.

Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn, Dutch painter, draftsman and etcher. Rembrandt's work, imbued with the desire for a deeply philosophical understanding of life, the inner world of man with all its richness emotional experiences, marks the pinnacle of development Dutch art XVII century, one of the peaks of the world artistic culture. Rembrandt's artistic heritage is distinguished by its exceptional diversity: he painted portraits, still lifes, landscapes, genre scenes, paintings on historical, biblical, mythological themes, Rembrandt was consummate master drawing and etching. After a short study at the University of Leiden (1620), Rembrandt decided to devote himself to art and studied painting with J. van Swanenburch in Leiden (circa 1620-1623) and P. Lastman in Amsterdam (1623); in 1625-1631 he worked in Leiden.

Rembrandt's paintings of the Leiden period are marked by a search for creative independence, although the influence of Lastman and the masters of Dutch Caravaggism is still noticeable in them (“Bringing to the Temple”, circa 1628-1629, Kunsthalle, Hamburg). In the paintings “The Apostle Paul” (circa 1629-1630, National Museum, Nuremberg) and “Simeon in the Temple” (1631, Mauritshuis, The Hague), he first used chiaroscuro as a means of enhancing the spirituality and emotional expressiveness of images. During these same years, Rembrandt worked hard on the portrait, studying the facial expressions of the human face. In 1632, Rembrandt moved to Amsterdam, where he soon married the wealthy patrician Saskia van Uylenburgh. 1630s - period family happiness and Rembrandt's enormous artistic success. The painting “The Anatomy Lesson of Doctor Tulp” (1632, Mauritshuis, The Hague), in which the artist innovatively solved the problem of a group portrait, giving the composition a vital ease and uniting those portrayed in a single action, brought Rembrandt wide fame. In portraits painted for numerous orders, Rembrandt van Rijn carefully conveyed facial features, clothing, and jewelry (the painting “Portrait of a Burgrave,” 1636, Dresden Gallery).

But Rembrandt’s self-portraits and portraits of people close to him were freer and more varied in composition, in which the artist boldly experimented in search of psychological expressiveness (self-portrait, 1634, Louvre, Paris; “Smiling Saskia”, 1633, Art Gallery, Dresden). The search for this period was completed by the famous “Self-Portrait with Saskia” or “Merry Society”; circa 1635, Picture Gallery, Dresden), boldly breaking with artistic canons, distinguished by the lively spontaneity of the composition, free manner of painting, and a major, light-filled, colorful range.

Biblical compositions of the 1630s (“Sacrifice of Abraham”, 1635, State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg) bear the imprint of the influence of Italian Baroque painting, which manifests itself in the somewhat forced dynamics of the composition, the sharpness of the angles, and light and shadow contrasts. A special place in Rembrandt’s work of the 1630s is occupied by mythological scenes in which the artist boldly challenged classical canons and traditions (“The Rape of Ganymede”, 1635, Art Gallery, Dresden).

A vivid embodiment of the artist’s aesthetic views was the monumental composition “Danae” (1636-1647, State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg), in which he seemed to enter into a polemic with the great masters of the Renaissance: he executed the nude figure of Danae, far from classical ideals, with a bold realistic spontaneity, but sensual-physical, ideal beauty images Italian masters contrasted beauty with spirituality and warmth of human feeling. During the same period, Rembrandt worked a lot in the techniques of etching and engraving (“Woman Piss”, 1631; “Seller of Rat Poison”, 1632; “The Wandering Couple”, 1634), creating bold and generalized pencil drawings.

In the 1640s, a conflict was brewing between Rembrandt’s work and the limited aesthetic demands of his contemporary society. It clearly manifested itself in 1642, when the painting “Night Watch” (Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam) caused protests from customers who did not accept the master’s main idea - instead of a traditional group portrait, he created a heroically upbeat composition with a scene of a performance by the guild of shooters at an alarm signal, i.e. . essentially a historical picture that evokes memories of the liberation struggle of the Dutch people. The influx of orders for Rembrandt is dwindling, his life circumstances are overshadowed by the death of Saskia. Rembrandt's work is losing its external effectiveness and its previously inherent notes of major. He writes calm biblical and genre scenes filled with warmth and intimacy, revealing subtle shades of human experiences, feelings of spiritual, family closeness (“David and Jonathan”, 1642, “ Holy family”, 1645, - both in the Hermitage, St. Petersburg).

All higher value both in painting and in Rembrandt’s graphics, the finest play of light and shadow is acquired, creating a special, dramatic, emotionally intense atmosphere (the monumental graphic sheet “Christ Healing the Sick” or “The Hundred Guilder Sheet”, circa 1642-1646; full of air and light dynamics landscape “Three Trees”, etching, 1643). The 1650s, filled with difficult life trials for Rembrandt, open the period creative maturity artist. Rembrandt increasingly turns to the portrait genre, depicting those closest to him (numerous portraits of Rembrandt’s second wife Hendrikje Stoffels; “Portrait of an Old Woman”, 1654, State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg; “Son Titus Reading”, 1657, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna ).

The artist is increasingly attracted to images ordinary people, old people who serve as the embodiment life wisdom and spiritual wealth (the so-called “Portrait of the Artist’s Brother’s Wife”, 1654, State Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow; “Portrait of an Old Man in Red”, 1652-1654, Hermitage, St. Petersburg). Rembrandt focuses on the face and hands, snatched from the darkness by soft diffused light, subtle facial expressions reflect the complex movement of thoughts and feelings; sometimes light, sometimes pasty brush strokes create the surface of the painting shimmering with colorful and light-and-shade shades.

In the mid-1650s, Rembrandt acquired mature painting skills. The elements of light and color, independent and even partly opposite in the artist’s early works, now merge into a single interconnected whole. The hot red-brown, now flaring up, now fading, quivering mass of luminous paint enhances the emotional expressiveness of Rembrandt’s works, as if warming them with a warm human feeling. In 1656, Rembrandt was declared an insolvent debtor, and all his property was sold at auction. He moved to the Jewish quarter of Amsterdam, where he spent the rest of his life in extremely cramped circumstances. The biblical compositions created by Rembrandt in the 1660s sum up his thoughts about the meaning of human life. In episodes expressing the clash of dark and light in human soul(“Assur, Haman and Esther”, 1660, Pushkin Museum, Moscow; “The Fall of Haman” or “David and Uriah”, 1665, State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg), rich warm colors, flexible impasto brushwork, intense play of shadow and light , the complex texture of the colorful surface serves to reveal complex conflicts and emotional experiences, affirming the triumph of good over evil.

Imbued with severe drama and heroism historical picture“Conspiracy of Julius Civilis” (“Conspiracy of the Batavians”, 1661, fragment preserved, National Museum, Stockholm). IN Last year life, Rembrandt created his main masterpiece - the monumental canvas “The Return of the Prodigal Son” (circa 1668-1669, State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg), which embodied all the artistic, moral and ethical issues late creativity artist. With amazing skill, he recreates in him a whole range of complex and deep human feelings, subjugates artistic media revealing beauty human understanding, compassion and forgiveness. Climax The transition from tension of feelings to the resolution of passions is embodied in sculpturally expressive poses, spare gestures, in the emotional structure of color, flashing brightly in the center of the picture and fading in the shadowed space of the background. The great Dutch painter, draftsman and etcher Rembrandt van Rijn died on October 4, 1669 in Amsterdam. The influence of Rembrandt's art was enormous. It affected the work not only of his immediate students, of whom Carel Fabricius came closest to understanding the teacher, but also on the art of every more or less significant Dutch artist. Rembrandt's art had a profound impact on the development of the entire world realistic art subsequently.

Creation Rembrandt Harmens van Rijn(1606-1669) marks the highest flowering of Dutch art of the 17th century and one of the peaks of world art in general. Democratic and truly humane, imbued with ardent faith in the triumph of just principles of life, it embodied the most advanced and life-affirming ideas of its time. The artist raised art on new level, enriching it with unprecedented vitality and psychological depth. Rembrandt created a new pictorial language in which main role played finely developed techniques of chiaroscuro and rich, emotionally intense coloring. The spiritual life of man has now become accessible to depiction through realistic art.

Rembrandt was an innovator in many genres. As a portrait painter, he was the creator of a unique genre of portrait-biography, where long life man and his inner world revealed in all its complexity and inconsistency. As a historical painter, he transformed distant ancient and biblical legends into a story about real earthly events, warmed by high humanism. human feelings and relationships.

The mid-1630s is the time of Rembrandt’s greatest proximity to the pan-European Baroque style, lush and noisy, full of theatrical pathos and stormy movement, contrasts of light and shadow, the contradictory juxtaposition of naturalistic and decorative moments, sensuality and cruelty.

IN Baroque period written "Descent from the Cross"(1634). The painting illustrates the Gospel legend about how Joseph of Arimathea, Nicodemus and other disciples and relatives of Christ, having received Pilate’s permission, took down the body of Christ at night, wrapped it in a rich shroud and buried it.

In this work, Rembrandt based himself on the famous Rubens painting of the same name, using individual compositional motifs of the great Fleming and trying to surpass him in expressing the spiritual movements of the characters.

To others important achievement this picture, along with the individualization of feelings characters, was the use of light to achieve the integrity of a multi-figure composition. The three main moments of the legend - the descent from the cross, the fainting of Mary and the spreading of the shroud - are illuminated by three various sources light, the intensity of which decreases in accordance with the decrease in the value of the scene.

A family tragedy and the completion of a responsible commission confronted Rembrandt with complex personal and creative life. The artist emerges from this crisis matured and wise. His art becomes more serious, more collected and deeper, and most importantly, his interest in inner life of a person, to what is going on in his soul.

In close connection with the evolution of Rembrandt’s work in the 1640s, one of the the most important works artist - "Danae", although there is a date on the picture 1636. Rembrandt was inspired by his first love, Saskia, to create the image of Danae, the legendary Greek princess imprisoned by her father to avoid his predicted death at the hands of his grandson. But ten years later, as recent research has shown, the artist, dissatisfied with the initial decision, significantly reworks the image of the main character. Model for final version The paintings were apparently served to him by Geertje Dirks, a young widow who settled in Rembrandt’s house after Saskia’s death, first as a nanny for one-year-old Titus, and then as a full mistress. Thus, the head, right hand and, to a large extent, the body of Danae, waiting in her prison for her lover (according to legend, Zeus, who fell in love with Danae, entered her in the form of a golden shower), as well as the figure of the old maidservant, were painted anew, in a bold, broad manner mid and second half of the 1640s. Almost all other details of the picture remained the same as they were painted in 1636, with a neat, drawing stroke characteristic of the previous period.

In the second version, that is, in 1646-1647, Danae received an in-depth psychological characteristics, thanks to which the innermost inner world of a woman was revealed, the whole complex and contradictory range of her feelings and experiences. “Danae” is thus visual specific example the formation of the famous Rembrandt psychologism.

Rembrandt's work in the 1650s is marked primarily by achievements in the field of portraiture. Externally, portraits of this period differ, as a rule, large size, monumental forms. calm poses. Models usually sit in deep armchairs, with their hands on their knees and facing the viewer. The face and hands are highlighted with light. These are always elderly people, wise from long life experience - old men and women with the stamp of gloomy thoughts on their faces and hard work on their hands. Such models gave the artist brilliant opportunities to show not only the external signs of old age, but also the spiritual appearance of a person. In the Hermitage collection these works are well represented by uncommissioned portraits:

“The Old Man in Red”, “Portrait of an Old Lady” and “Portrait of an Old Jew”.

We do not know the name of the person who served as the model for the portrait "The Old Man in Red" Rembrandt painted it twice: in a portrait of 1652 ( National Gallery, London) he is depicted sitting in a chair with armrests, bowing his head on the right hand; the Hermitage version interprets the same topic - man alone with your thoughts. This time the artist uses a strictly symmetrical composition, depicting an old man sitting motionless from the front. But the more noticeable is the movement of thought, the subtle change in facial expression: it seems now stern, now softer, now tired, now suddenly illuminated by the tide inner strength and energy. The same thing happens with the hands: they seem to be either convulsively clenched or lying exhausted. The artist achieves this primarily thanks to the brilliant mastery of chiaroscuro, which, depending on its strength and contrast, introduces elegiac relaxation or dramatic tension into the image. The manner of applying paint to the canvas also plays a huge role. The old man’s wrinkled face and knobby, worn-out hands acquire artistic expressiveness thanks to a viscous mixture of paints, in which intertwining thick strokes convey the structure of the form, and thin glazes give it movement and life.

The nameless old man in red, with emphasized dignity, fortitude and nobility, became an expression of the new ethical position of the artist, who discovered that the value of an individual does not depend on official position person in society.

By the mid-1660s, Rembrandt completed his most soulful work - "Return of the Prodigal Son" It can be seen as a testament to Rembrandt the man and Rembrandt the artist. It is here that the idea of ​​all-forgiving love for man, for the humiliated and suffering - the idea that Rembrandt served throughout his life - finds its highest, most perfect embodiment. And it is in this work that we encounter all the richness and diversity of picturesque and techniques, which the artist developed over many decades of creativity.

The artist limits himself extremely to color. The picture is dominated by golden ocher, cinnamon red and black-brown tones with an endless wealth of subtle transitions within this meager range. A brush, a spatula, and a brush handle are involved in applying paint to the canvas; but even this seems insufficient to Rembrandt - he applies paint to the canvas directly with his finger (this is how, for example, the heel of the left foot of the prodigal son is painted). Thanks to a variety of techniques, an increased vibration of the paint surface is achieved - the paints either burn, or sparkle, or dully smolder, or as if glowing from within, and not a single detail, not a single, even the most insignificant, corner of the canvas leaves the viewer indifferent.

Only the wise one life experience a man and a great artist who had come a long way could create this brilliant and simple work.

In history Western Europe The 17th century is commonly called the “Golden Age of the Netherlands”. Indeed, during this period, the young state, which has an excellent geographical location, experienced an era of unprecedented prosperity in the economic and cultural sense.

If we talk specifically about the culture of the Netherlands of the 17th century, another golden age immediately comes to mind, which concerns painting. The fact is that, by an unusual coincidence, the economic successes and rises of Holland took place at the same time with the birth and creation of incredible masterpieces that were revolutionary in drawing techniques.

During this century there lived many masters of painting who influenced the world of fine art and made a tangible contribution to it - Hercules Seghers, Franz Hals, Meindert Hobbema, Jacob van Ruisdael, and, naturally, Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn (better known as Rembrandt).

Rembrandt, a magnificent portrait painter, whose work changed people's ideas about such a direction in painting as realism, was not at all kind to life.

Although he began his career under very good circumstances, receiving well-deserved recognition after his first works, the blows of fate in the form of the loss of those closest to him in the second half of his life literally broke the master. Rembrandt earned recognition of his talent even in his youth, which was combined with very serious fees for the works that the master painted to order. Happy marriage with a girl from a noble family strengthened his position in society, and the birth of his son Titus became the most joyful event in the life of the master.

However, no one is as dependent on the tastes and preferences of rich people as hired artists, and when these tastes went against the preferences of Rembrandt himself, he began to rapidly become poor. Soon after this, the master's wife dies, and the grief-stricken artist and his son move from the luxurious estate to a cheap rented apartment. But in the new apartment, Rembrandt begins a relationship with his young maid, who becomes his last companion - the artist was a very devoted person and valued his family.

Therefore, two deaths in a row - his beloved woman and his son Titus - finally undermine Rembrandt. After these blows, he was no longer destined to recover, and he died literally a few months after the tragedies, in 1669. However, Rembrandt's legacy is priceless and immortal - humanity realized this two hundred years after his death.

Most of the master’s paintings are today kept in the Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam), state museum Netherlands, several paintings are kept in the Hermitage (St. Petersburg).

The largest square in Amsterdam is named after Rembrandt, as well as one of the craters on the surface of the planet Mercury, which is one of the deepest in the solar system.

One of Rembrandt's first paintings, the artist completed it at age 26, shortly after moving to Amsterdam. The painting created a real sensation, and the young Rembrandt immediately after its presentation received numerous orders from wealthy art connoisseurs. “Anatomy Lesson” is defined as a representative of the “group portrait” genre. Paintings of this direction were painted before Rembrandt, but the master used several innovative ideas, which were later recognized as a revolution of the genre.

The people depicted in the painting are not arranged in straight rows, but are gathered in a crescent shape, surrounding a surgical table (if you imagine the view from above). From the perspective of the viewer, the characters in the film are grouped in the shape of a pyramid, which is also an innovation in the genre. This construction of the composition allowed Rembrandt to convey the genuine interest experienced by the observers of the autopsy - they all try to find the most comfortable position in order to examine everything in detail, lean forward and sit higher so as not to miss anything. Note the excellent shadow work - the still light falls on the corpse and shows its deathly pallor, and the life that literally bubbles around the surgical table is covered with soft, incredibly realistic shadows.

The peak of financial viability in Rembrandt’s life came in 1642 - it was then that the artist’s most monumental work was completed - a four-meter canvas of the painting “Night Watch”. When examining the painting, one can also note a number of innovative discoveries by the artist, perhaps the most important of which is the depiction of action in dynamics.

The fact is that before Rembrandt, group portraits always depicted people in static poses - usually all the characters were sitting or standing, and their gazes were directed towards the viewer. Here the watchmen are presented in motion, the picture is a photographic “cast of the moment” - the standard bearer unfurls the flag, keeping his gaze on it, the drummer beats out the battle roll, which is very annoying street dog, which barks furiously and is in an aggressive pose.

The sharp play of light and shadow, which looks incredibly realistic (largely due to the successful choice of composition - the arrows emerge from the dark courtyard into the illuminated open space) is also Rembrandt's innovation. It should be noted that such a sharp play of light and shadow is very characteristic of impressionism, and the master lived two centuries before the heyday of this genre.

One of the last works of the great master. IN mature years and old age, Rembrandt began to be fascinated by stories telling about human relationships and experiences. The picture itself is based on the plot of a parable from the New Testament, telling about a merciful father who cordially and reverently receives his dissolute son, who returned from distant countries and endured many misfortunes and hardships.

In accordance with the law of the golden ratio, the main characters of the picture are shifted to the side relative to the center and immediately attract the viewer’s attention, since they stand out not only by location, but also by lighting. The painting amazes the viewer with its incredible humanity and realism, and the artist’s attentiveness to every detail. If you look closely, you can understand the master's idea, even if you are unfamiliar with biblical history. The shaved head of the prodigal son shows a probable convict past, the shoes are worn to huge holes, and the richly embroidered edge of the collar shows that he belonged to a noble family, almost completely dissolved in troubles and wanderings. The whole picture is designed in special red-brown tones with elements of golden shades; it simultaneously exudes luxury and touching parental compassion.

In addition to the father and son, there are four more people in the picture, and many interesting assumptions and legends are associated with the two figures located on the right edge. Formally, the man in the red cape on the right is the elder brother of the repentant son, but many art researchers suggest that in fact he himself and the seated man in the black hat are the same father and son, only years earlier, before the son fell into debauchery. There are also versions that the man in the red cape is the Eternal Jew (the Gospel character who refused the Savior’s request to lean on his house on the way to Calvary and was punished for this by eternal wandering until the second coming). Another interesting guess is that Rembrandt portrayed himself in this man.

The great Dutchman Rembrandt Harmens van Rijn was born in 1606 in the city of Leiden. After studying as an apprentice, at the age of 19 he began to work as an independent artist.

In his first biblical compositions, the influence of the Italian Baroque is noticeable: in the sharp contrasts of chiaroscuro and the dynamics of the composition. But Rembrandt soon found his own style in the use of chiaroscuro to express emotions in portraits.

In 1632, the painter moved to Amsterdam and married a rich patrician. During this period he was especially successful, famous and happy. And his works are rich rich colors and breathe joy. He paints large religious compositions, many portraits and self-portraits with his beloved wife.

Rembrandt became especially famous as a portrait painter, painting more than a hundred portraits and dozens of self-portraits during his career. It was in depicting himself that the artist boldly experimented in search of special expressiveness of the face.

Rembrandt was the first to solve the problem of boring group portraits by uniting the people depicted general action, which gave faces and figures a natural ease.

The artist was glorified by a group portrait called “The Anatomy Lesson of Doctor Tulp” (1632), which depicts not even rows of pompous faces, but heroes fascinating story, as if caught by the artist in the midst of the action.

Researchers consider the crowning glory of Rembrandt’s talent as a portrait painter to be “The Night Watch” (1642), a commissioned portrait of a rifle society. However, the customers did not accept the painting, rejecting the innovative idea, where instead of lined up shooters, a heroic composition on the theme of the liberation struggle was depicted. To the shooters, among whom were nobles, these images seemed alien and politically untimely.

This rejection became the first tragic chord in the artist’s life. And when his beloved wife died, Rembrandt’s work lost its joyful notes. The 1640s become a period of calm biblical motifs, where the artist more and more subtly reveals the shades of the characters’ emotional experiences. In his graphics, chiaroscuro plays even more gracefully, creating a dramatic atmosphere.

In "Danae" (1647) the artist revealed his aesthetic views on feminine beauty, defying the Renaissance. His nude Danae is emphatically far from classical ideals, but sensual and warm, like a living woman.

The period of Rembrandt's creative maturity occurred in the 1650s - a time of difficult life trials. His property was sold at auction for debts, but the painter practically did not fulfill orders. He painted portraits of loved ones, ordinary people and old people. The artist’s special attention, with the help of spots of diffused light, was focused on faces with rich, but subtle emotions, and worn-out hands.

Rembrandt interpreted biblical images in his own way, clearly “down-to-earth” religious legends, depriving them of the otherworldly. He often gave the faces of saints the features of specific people who posed for him for paintings.

By the mid-1650s, the painter had become a true master, skillfully conquering light and color for the sake of emotional expressiveness of images. But he lived out his life in poverty and loneliness, having buried his second wife and son. The artist’s latest works are devoted to reflection on the clash of evil with good in the human soul. The final chord was the master’s main masterpiece, “The Return of the Prodigal Son,” written in 1669, the year of the artist’s death. The repentant son, kneeling, expressed the entire tragedy of a person’s life path, and in the image of his father one can see love itself and endless forgiveness.

The attribution of Rembrandt's paintings is made according to the latest research by a group of reputable scientists on his work and is updated in the course of research currently underway. " Research project Rembrandt" was founded in 1968 and set itself the goal of verifying the authenticity and ownership of the master's paintings based on a detailed study of each using the latest art historical and technical achievements in this area.

Album layout and translation - Konstantin (koschey)