Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn, one of the finest painters of the Baroque, would not only add theatrical light or drama to his compositions but also attach a psychological stir through the expressive emotions in the figures. Never before Rembrandt and his oeuvre were presented from the perspective of his most talented and closest pupil, Samuel van Hoogstraten, who had unique insights into the artist’s creative process and work. The Kunsthistorisches Museum of Vienna presents an exhibition of the major works of Rembrandt along with the unique insights of illusionistic art techniques from October 8, 2024, to January 12, 2025.
Curated by Sabine Pénot, the exhibition showcases around sixty works, including paintings, drawings, and prints, provided by the museum’s Picture Gallery and major international lenders like the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Museé du Louvre Paris, the Nationalmuseum Sweden, the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza Madrid, the Fine Arts Museum San Francisco, the Dordrechts Museum, the Royal Castle Warsaw, the Armand Hammer Collection in Los Angeles, the Leiden Collection in New York and private collections.
Some of the significant artworks include Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn, The Kitchen Maid, 1651; Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn, Girl at a Window, 1645; Samuel van Hoogstraten, Head of a Bearded Man at a Window, 1653; Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn, Portrait of a Woman, c.1632 and Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn, Portrait of a man, c.1632.
(1606 Leiden – 1669 Amsterdam)
Girl in a Picture Frame
1641
The Royal Castle in Warsaw
© The Royal Castle in Warsaw – Museum
Photo: Andrzej Ring, Lech Sandzewicz
(1606 Leiden – 1669 Amsterdam)
Agatha Bas
1641
Oil on panel, 105.4 x 83.9 cm
Royal Collection Trust
© His Majesty King Charles III 2024
(1606 Leiden – 1669 Amsterdam)
A Woman in Bed
1647
Oil on canvas, 81.10 x 67.80 cm
© National Galleries of Scotland, photo: Antonia Reeve
(1606 Leiden – 1669 Amsterdam)
Self-Portrait with Two Circles
1665/69
Oil on canvas, 116.3 x 97.2 cm
English Heritage, The Iveagh Bequest, Kenwood, London
© Historic England Archive
(1606 Leiden – 1669 Amsterdam)
Saskia van Uylenburgh in Arcadian Costume
1635
Oil on canvas, 123.5 x 97.5 cm
© The National Gallery, London
(1606 Leiden – 1669 Amsterdam)
Juno
c.1662-65
Oil on canvas, 127 x 123.8 cm
© The Armand Hammer Collection, Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, US
(1606 Leiden – 1669 Amsterdam)
The Preaching of St. John the Baptist
1634/35
Canvas on panel, 62.7 x 81.1 cm
© Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
(1606 Leiden – 1669 Amsterdam)
Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem
1630
Oil on panel, 58 x 46 cm
© Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
(1627 – 1678 Dordrecht)
Self-Portrait
1653
Oil on panel, 54 x 45 cm
©Liechtenstein. The Princely Collections, Vaduz-Vienna
(1627 – 1678 Dordrecht)
Feigned Letter Rack Painting
1666/78
Canvas, 63 × 79 cm
Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe
© Creative Commons, Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe
(1627 – 1678 Dordrecht)
Still Life with a Letter
1653/54
Oil on canvas, 90 x 70.8 cm
© Olomouc Archbishopric – Archdiocesan Museum in Kroměříž
(1627 – 1678 Dordrecht)
The Slippers
1650-1675
Oil on canvas, 103 x 70 cm
Musée du Louvre, Paris
Photo © RMN-Grand Palais (musée du Louvre) / Michel Urtado
(1627 – 1678 Dordrecht)
Perspective portrait of a young man reading in the courtyard of an imaginary building
1662/67
Oil on canvas, 238 x 175.3 cm
© Dordrechts Museum
(1627 – 1678 Dordrecht)
Inner Palace Courtyard in Vienna
1652
Oak panel, 78.5 × 84.5 cm
Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna,
Picture Gallery
© KHM-Museumsverband
(1627 – 1678 Dordrecht)
Old Man at a Window
1653
Canvas, 114.9 cm × 91.3 cm
Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna,
Picture Gallery
© KHM-Museumsverband
The most significant theme of the exhibition is the examination of the powerful effect of color and the magnificent illusionistic techniques by which Rembrandt and van Hoogstraten were able to create ‘virtual realities’ in their paintings. The exhibition will also present the treatise on the art of painting, which was published in 1678, Inleyding tot de hooge schoole der schilderkonst, Anders de zichtbaere wereld (Introduction to the Academy of Painting, or The Visible World). As a direct witness of Rembrandt’s studio, his pupil, Samuel van Hoogstraten, provided a unique insight into the master’s creative process and work, whether his workshop practice, training methods, and approaches to the theory of art.
It offers a unique opportunity to encounter the art of Samuel and Rembrandt at the same time so that the viewer can explore their artworks while examining them in light of the intellectual currents of the time. Further, the visitor will find resemblances with the independent development in the oeuvres of both artists, providing excellent insights into their artworks.
Adapted versions of the exhibition will be presented by the cooperation partner, the Rembrandt House Museum in Amsterdam, from 1 February to 4 May 2025.
Resource.
Featured Image: Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn (1606 Leiden – 1669 Amsterdam) Self-Portrait with Two Circles 1665/69 and Samuel van Hoogstraten (1627 – 1678 Dordrecht) Old Man at a Window 1653; English Heritage, The Iveagh Bequest, Kenwood, London © Historic England Archive and Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna, Picture Gallery © KHM-Museumsverband.
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