In regard to the art world, certain names become icons of the craft. The names that when one expresses examples of genius or skill to their friends, roll from the tongue almost without thinking. There are men and women who have, throughout the history of art, articulated themselves in such a way that the appreciation and critiques of the images they have created have grown to mythical proportions.
One only need look as far as Leonardo da Vinci whose work has become the subject of books and movies and has been surrounded by conspiracy and intrigue. Or to think about Michelangelo and the task he undertook in painting the Sistine Chapel. But among the greatest of the great painters is one who, though his name may be recognizable to many, has fallen into a place of relative obscurity compared others who could be considered his equals.
A Life of Extremes
Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669) is considered to be the greatest of all Dutch painters, and among the greatest painters who ever lived. Painting mainly in Amsterdam, Holland, Rembrandt’s life as a painter took off to an early series for fortunes as he made a solid career as a portrait painter by the age of twenty-five, and marrying a wealthy girl he bought a house where he lived comfortably.
Though Rembrandt received early recognition as a skilled artist, he never received the accolades of genius that were handed down to such figures as da Vinci and Michelangelo, nor did he receive the respect as an intellectual as did the German artist Albrecht Durer or the Belgian painter Peter Paul Rubens.
Though Rembrandt secured success and fortune early in his life a string of misfortunes and poor choices left the painter impoverished to the point that when he died he had nothing more than some old clothes and his painting utensils.
Beauty and Ugliness
Rembrandt painted in such way as to communicate a beauty that few before and perhaps fewer after him have been able to emulate. The way he allowed light to play against the figures, the vividness of the color and smoothness of the lines all exemplified the essential qualities of what is considered beautiful.
Yet it was not these qualities that epitomized Rembrandt’s work. It is the ugliness that he never attempted to conceal; rather he presented his figures with a complete sincerity that is so true that one forgets what sense of beauty they are looking for. In reference to one of Rembrandt’s self-portraits, art historian E. H. Gombrich writes: “There is no trace of pose, no trace of vanity, just the penetrating gaze of a painter who scrutinizes his own features, ever ready to learn more and more about the secrets of the human face.”
When considering great artists and examining what qualities they posses that earn them the respect of posterity, one must not forget Rembrandt van Rijn. The ugliness and sincerity of life that exists in his portraits may in some ways be more valuable than the smiling Mona Lisa of Leonardo da Vinci. After all, no one can smile forever.
Source:
- Gombrich, E. H., The Story of Art; Phaidon Press, New York. 2006.
Theodore Haddad - Theodore's education and long time interests in the arts have led him toward both fiction and non-fiction writing. He is currently working ...
