Tweed Museum of Art : Power of Art

Rothko

(American, 1903–1970)

This activity is made possible in part by a grant from WNET/PBS 13, New York, through PBS 8/WDSE, Duluth.

At one time about ninety paintings were counted as Rembrandt self-portraits, but it is now known that he had his students copy his own self-portraits as part of their training. Today, scholarship has reduced the number of authentic self-portraits to forty paintings, a few drawings and thirty-one etchings. Many show Rembrandt posing in quasi-historical dress, or making faces at himself. Among the works George Tweed purchased are several which were once attributed to Rembrandt, including a painting thought to be a self-portrait of the artist.

Among the more prominent characteristics of Rembrandt’s art are his use of chiaroscuro, the theatrical employment of light and shadow which he derived from Caravaggio, or from Dutch followers of Caravaggio. Also notable are his dramatic and lively presentation of portrait subjects. His immediate family—his wife Saskia, his son Titus and his common-law wife Hendrickje—often figured prominently in his paintings, even those with mythical, biblical or historical themes.

Gerrit De Wet, Destruction of the Army of the Pharoah

Gerrit DeWet, Destruction of the Army of Pharoah

The influence of Rembrandt’s painting is clearly seen in Gerrit De Wet’s Destruction of the Army of Pharaoh. De Wet uses contemporary Dutch figures in the historical scene, as Rembrandt often did, and the theatrical, dramatic effects of supernatural light, contrasted with pitch dark, recall both Rembrandt’s paintings and etchings. David Stark, author of European Painting in the Tweed Museum of Art (2000), points that the bearded figure to Moses’ left looks very much like the civic guardsman in Rembrandt’s masterful painting, The Night Watch, of 1642.

Carravaggio

(Italian, 1571–1610)

Bernini

(Italian, 1598–1680)

Rembrandt

(Dutch, 1606–1669)

Jacques-Louis David

(French, 1748–1825)

Joseph Mallord William Turner

(British, 1775–1851)*

Van Gogh

(Dutch, 1853–1890)

Picasso

(Spanish, 1881–1973)

Rothko

(American, 1903–1970)


Carravaggio (Italian, 1571–1610) Bernini (Italian, 1598–1680) Rembrandt (Dutch, 1606–1669) Jacques-Louis David (French, 1748–1825) Joseph Mallord William Turner (British, 1775–1851)* Van Gogh (Dutch, 1853–1890) Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973) Rothko (American, 1903–1970) This activity is made possible in part by a grant from WNET/PBS 13, New York, through PBS 8/WDSE, Duluth. At one time about ninety paintings were counted as Rembrandt self-portraits, but it is now known that he had his students copy his own self-portraits as part of their training. Today, scholarship has reduced the number of authentic self-portraits to forty paintings, a few drawings and thirty-one etchings. Many show Rembrandt posing in quasi-historical dress, or making faces at himself. Among the works George Tweed purchased are several which were once attributed to Rembrandt, including a painting thought to be a self-portrait of the artist. Among the more prominent characteristics of Rembrandt’s art are his use of chiaroscuro, the theatrical employment of light and shadow which he derived from Caravaggio, or from Dutch followers of Caravaggio. Also notable are his dramatic and lively presentation of portrait subjects. His immediate family—his wife Saskia, his son Titus and his common-law wife Hendrickje—often figured prominently in his paintings, even those with mythical, biblical or historical themes. Gerrit DeWet, Destruction of the Army of Pharoah The influence of Rembrandt’s painting is clearly seen in Gerrit De Wet’s Destruction of the Army of Pharaoh. De Wet uses contemporary Dutch figures in the historical scene, as Rembrandt often did, and the theatrical, dramatic effects of supernatural light, contrasted with pitch dark, recall both Rembrandt’s paintings and etchings. David Stark, author of European Painting in the Tweed Museum of Art (2000), points that the bearded figure to Moses’ left looks very much like the civic guardsman in Rembrandt’s masterful painting, The Night Watch, of 1642.