Rembrandt - Nationalmuseum

Transcription

1
[Rembrandt]
#13
Old Man Guided by a Little Boy
Pen and point of brush in brown ink, 130 x 84 mm
NM 2035/1863
No waternark.
Chain lines: 25 mm.
Numbered in the lower right corner 192 (struck out) and 1836 (Sparre), pen
and brown ink. Mark of the Royal Collection (Lugt 1638).
Provenance: Roger de Piles? *Crozat (Mariette, p. 101) *C. G. Tessin (List
1739-42, p. 46v; Cat. 1749, livre 14, no. 44) *Kongl. Biblioteket (Cat.
1790, no. 1836) *Kongl. Museum (Lugt 1638)
Bibliography: Hofstede de Groot 1906, no. 1601 *Kruse & Neumann 1920,
no. IV:24 *Kruse & Neumann 1921, no. IV:24 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt,
Werk und Forschung, Wien 1935, pp. 38 and 41 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt,
Selected Drawings, London & New York 1947, no. 107 * A. L. Romdahl,
"Rembrandts teckningar" , Nationalmusei årsbok, Stockholm 1921, pp. 106f
*Benesch 1954-57, I, no. 189, fig. 201 *Ch. Tümpel, " Iconografische
verklaring van de voorstelling ut twee tekeningen van Rembrandt", Kroniek
van het Rembrandthuis, 26 (1972), pp.69ff *Benesch 1973, I, no.189, fig.
219 *D. Vogel-Köhn, Rembrandts Kinderzeichnungen, Cologne 1981 (Diss.
1977), no. 56 *Giltaij 1988, under no. 16, fig. a *P. Schatborn, in
2
Rembrandt: the Master and his Workshop, New Haven & London 1991, p.
66, fig. 16c.
Exhibitions: Amsterdam, Rembrandt Tentoonstelling, 1935, no. 53
*Stockholm 1956, no. 113 *Rotterdam, Museum Boymans - Amsterdam,
Rijksmuseum, Rembrandt tekeningen, 1956, no. 93 *Wien, Arbertina,
Rembrandt, 1956, no. *New York-Fort Worth-San Francisco, Dürer to
Delacroix, 1986, no. 87 *Stockholm 1992, no. 143.
The emphasis in this drawing is on the old man, while the boy at his side is
rather loosely sketched. The form of the old mans high hat has been
changed into a wider and flatter head gear. The drawing seems to be cut on
the left. The two figures recur in a drawing in Rotterdam, there with a third,
female figure on the left holding the old mans hand.1 It seems that this was
the case also in our drawing before is was cut. In the Rotterdam drawing
the emphasis is even more on the old man, both the boy and the woman
are just sketched in. The old man has the flat, turban like head cover, the
posture is more shrunken but with the set jaws of a man with his mind
made up. To the left his head is drawn once more, with a sad expression,
wearing a simple cap – the expression is closer to that of the Stockholm
drawing. It would seem as if different types of head gear was tried to
support and strenghten the mode expressed.
The subject matter has proven difficult to determine. Kruse, Benesch and
others have connected the drawing with the “Visitation” of 1640 in the
Detroit Institute of Art, and see the man as Zacharias, who is sometimes
represented as supported by a youth.2 The boy is vaguely similar, but the
female figure suggests yet another subject, Abraham's dismissal of Hagar
and Ismael. Benesch has doubted that the figure is that of a woman, and
Schatborn has suggested that it represents Jacob, Benjamin and an older
son. However, Giltaij has convincingly argued for the older identification of
Hagar and Ismael for the Rotterdam drawing. The emotions of grief, fatal
determination and resignation expressed by the succession of heads in the
two drawings would all be appropriate in this case.
There is an almost identical rendering of an old man in one of the many
black chalk drawings by Rembrandt from the early 1640s.3 Such studies
would have provided material for a number of compositions. Probably
Rembrandt tried the same figure in different contexts, modifying the
expression accordingly. In contrast, the two pen drawings, identical in style,
must be part of the exploration of a specific theme. Benesch dates the
drawings c. 1639-40, while Giltaij suggests a slightly later date, about
1642-43, basing himself on the lack of finely defined detail and the broad
manner of reworking. The question whether Rembrandt's style developed so
orderly that this kind of close dating is meaningfull, remains open.
1
Benesch 1973, I, no. 190.
A Corpus of Rembrandt Paintings, III, no. A 138.
3
Coll. Ch. A. Duit, Benesch 1973, IV, no. 665b.
2
3
[Rembrandt]
#14
Woman Teaching a Child to Walk
Pen and brown ink, 160 x 165 mm
NM 2074/1863
Laid down.
Mark of the Royal Collection (Lugt 1638). Numbered in the lower right
corner no 60 (struck out) and, on the mount, 1873 (Sparre) and 2., pen and
brown ink.
Provenance: Crozat *C. G. Tessin (List 1739-42, p. 46v; Cat. 1749, livre 15,
no. 2) *Kongl. Biblioteket (Cat. 1790, no. 1873) *Kongl. Museum (Lugt
1638)
Bibliography: Michel 1893, p. 240 *F. Lippmann, Original Drawings by
Rembrandt. Reproduced in the Colours of the Originals, I. Series, Berlin
188-1892, no. 130 *Hofstede de Groot 1906, no. 1597 *F. Saxl, "Zu
einigen Handzeichnungen Rembrandts", Repertorium für Kunstwissenschaft,
31, Berlin 1908, p. 234 *Kruse & Neumann 1920, no. IV:12 *Kruse &
Neumann 1921, no. IV:12 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt, Werk und Forschung,
Wien 1935, p. 41 *R. Hamann, Rembrandt, 1948, p. 153 *Benesch 195457, no. 709 *W. Scheidig, Rembrandt als Zeichner, Leipzig 1962, nr. 35
*S. Slive, Drawings of Rembrandt, New York 1965, no. 134 *B. Haak,
Rembrandt, His Life, His Work, His Time, 1969, p. 195 *Benesch 1973, IV,
4
no. 706, fig. 895 *D. Vogel-Köhn, Rembrandts Kinderzeichnungen, Cologne
1981 (Diss. 1974), no. 71.
Exhiditions: Amsterdam 1953, no. 49 *Stockholm 1956, no. 108
*Rotterdam, Museum Boymans - Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum, Rembrandt
tekeningen, 1956, no. 127 *Wien, Albertina, Rembrandt, 1956, no. 72
*Stockholm 1967, no. 271 *Stockholm 1992-93, no. 147.
The child learning to walk is wearing a head protection and is held in a
harness by a woman. A first sketch of the child on the left was abandoned
and repeated to the right. The drawing fits well in style with the previous
drawings. A similar scene is also depicted in the background of the etching
“The Hog” of 1643 (Bartsch 157). If, as has been tentalively suggested, the
child is Rembrandt’s son Titus, who was born in September 1641, the
drawing must have been made in the second half of 1642.
The identification of the child as Titus is hardly conclusive, and a scene with
an infant in a walking frame attended by the same (?) old woman is found
also in the etching “Male nude standing and seated”, dated around 1646
(Bartsch 194). Benesch believes that this drawing and the following two
(Cat. 15, 16) come from the same sketckbook. However, the paper in the
present drawing seems to be different. Benesch dates the group of drawings
around 1646, while Vogel-Köhn prefers a slightly earlier date.
The evidence for dating provided by the etchings is not conclusive. As White
has pointed out, the spatial structure of the etching with the two nudes is
unclear; it seems to combine independent studies. Appearantly the genre
scenes were added to the prints in order to make them more atractive. The
artist may have resorted to older sketches or sometimes worked from
memory.4
Se also the following number.
4
Chr. White, Rembrandt as an etcher, London 1969, pp. 178f.
5
[Rembrandt]
#15
Woman Suckling a Baby
Pen and brown ink. 178 x 154 mm
NM 2038/1863 (recto), 2040/1863 (verso)
6
Verso: Woman holding a child, and the head of a man with a turban, pen
and brown ink.
Right edge torn irregularly, perhaps from a sketch-book.
No watermark.
Chain lines: 18 – 28 mm.
Numbered in the lower right corner 1839 (Sparre), pen and brown ink. Mark
of the Royal Collection (Lugt 1638).
Provenance: Jan van de Capelle? *Roger de Piles? *Crozat *C. G. Tessin
(List 1739-42, p. 46v; Cat. 1749, livre 15, no. 38) *Kongl. Biblioteket (Cat.
Bibliography: F. Lippmann, Original Drawings by Rembrandt. Reproduced in
the Colours of the Originals, II. Series (Continued dy C. Hofstede de Groot),
The Hague 1898-1901, no. 17 *Hofstede de Groot 1906, no. 1595 *F.
Schmidt-Degener, “Tentoonstelling van Rembrandts tekeningen in de
Bibliothèque Nationale te Paris”, Onze Kunst, 14 (1908), p. *F. Saxl, "Zu
einigen Handzeichnungen Rembrandts", Repertorium für Kunstwissenschaft,
31, Berlin 1908, p. 336 *C. Neumann, Aus der Werkstatt Rembrandts, Mü
nchen 1918, pp. 119ff *Kruse & Neumann 1920, no. IV:8-9 *Kruse &
Neumann 1921, no. IV:8-9 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt, Werk und Forschung,
Wien 1935, p. 41 * Henkel 1942, p. 9, under no. 21 *J. Rosenberg,
Rembrandt, Cambridge, Mass. 1948, p. 147, fig. 196 *Benesch 1954-57,
IV, no. 707 *E. Haverkamp-Begemann, "Otto Benesch. The Drawings of
7
Rembrandt" , Kunstchronik, 14 (1961), p. 54 *W. Scheidig, Rembrandt als
Zeichner, Leipzig 1962, no. 36 *S. Slive, Drawings of Rembrandt, New York
1965, no. 234 O. Benesch, Collected Writings I, London 1970, p. 258
*Benesch 1973, no. 707, figs. 896-897 *D. Vogel-Köhn, Rembrandts
Kinderzeichnungen, Cologne 1981 (Diss. 1974), no. 69 *Royalton-Kisch
1992, p. 87, under no. 31.
Exhibitions: Amsterdam 1935, no. 48 *Stockholm 1956, no. 80
*Stockholm 1967, no. 274 Stockholm 1992-93, no. 145.
Rembrandt seems to have kept his studies of women and children in a
separate folder. An album containing 135 such studies was later owned by
the painter Jan van de Capelle, according to an inventory of his estate in
1680. It is tempting to assume that Roger de Piles acquired this album.
This and the following drawing are probably two sheets from the same
sketchbook, which seems to have been reused, since there are drawings of
a head with a turban on the verso of this sheet, and an unfinished turban on
the next. The drawings of turbans are done with a finer pen, and according
to Benesch by a different hand. More likely they are earlier, and the
unfinished sketchbook reused. Another head with a turban, neglected by
Benesch, was published by Chr. White.5 The drawing is in the British
Museum.6 It is clearly the same hand, and the features of the face, in
particular the mustasche, suggest that it is also the same model. The head
is on the verso of a drawing of a standing oriental in the British Museum,
dated c. 1639.
Rembrandt made numerous studies of women with infants on their lap
during the years around 1640, when several of his children were born and
he had the occation to study this motif in his own home. Vogel-Köhn
therefore places them in the period 1630-1643, also on stylistic grounds,
while Benesch preferred a slightly later date. A further echo of these studies
can be found in Rembrandts paintings of the Madonna and child of the mid
1640s, one such painting is in the Hermitage, another in Cassel.7 On the
other hand Frits Lugt connected the Stockholm drawings with a study a
woman and child in the Louvre and dated them 1635-40.8 HaverkampBegeman, in his review of Lugt, added two more drawings to the group and
agreed with Lugt on the earlier dating of the drawings. 9
5
Chr. White, “Three drawings by Rembrandt”, Master Drawings, I:2 (1963), p. 38, pl. 32a.
Benesch 1973, II, no. 207 (dated c. 1633); Royalton-Kisch 1992, no. 30 (c. 1639).
7
A. Bredius, Rembrandt. The Complete edition of the Paintings. Revised by H. Gerson, London 1969,
nos. 570 and 572.
8
Lugt 1931-33, no. 1186.
9
“Woman holding a baby” in a private collection, London, and a “Man playing with a child” in the British
Museum, Benesch 1973, III, nos. 658 and 659 (dated 1640-42). For the latter drawing Royalton-Kisch
1992, no. 31 (c. 1639-40).
6
8
[Rembrandt]
#16
Two Studies of Women with Children
Pen and brown ink, brown wash, 165 x 167 mm
NM 2039/1863
Laid down.
Numbered in the lower right corner 1840 (Sparre), pen and drown ink. Mark
Provenance: Jan van de Capelle? *Roger de Piles? *Crozat *C. G. Tessin
(List 1739-42, p. 46v; Cat. 1749, livre 15, no. 39) *Kongl. Biblioteket (Cat.
Bibliography: F. Lippmann, Original Drawings dy Rembrandt. Reproduced in
the Colours of the Originals, I. Series, Berlin 188-1892, no. 131 *Michel
1893, p. 213 *R. von Seidlitz, "Rembrandts Zeichnungen", Repertorium für
Kunstwissenschaft, 17, Berlin 1894, pp. 122 and 125 *Hofstede de Groot
1906, no. 1596 *F. Saxl, "Zu eineigen Handzeichnungen Rembrandts",
Repertorium für Kunstwissenschaft, 31, Berlin 1908, p. 232 *C. Neumann,
Aus der Werkstatt Rembrandts, München 1918, p. 232 *Kruse & Neumann
1920, no. IV:7 *Kruse & Neumann 1921, no. IV:7 *O. Benesch,
Rembrandt, Werk und Forschung, Wien 1935, p. 41 *Henkel 1942, p. 9
*Benesch 1954-57, no. 708 *E. Haverkamp-Begemann, "Otto Benesch,
The Drawings of Rembrandt", Kunstchronik, XIV (1961), p. 53 *J. G. van
9
Gelder (Ed.), Great Drawings of all Times, II, New York 1962, no. 574 *S.
Slive, Drawings of Rembrandt, New York 1965, no. 135 *P. Desargues,
Rembrandt et Saskia a Amsterdam, Lausanne 1965, no. 200 *Benesch
1973, no. 708, fig. 899 *D. Vogel-Köhn, Rembrandts Kinderzeichnungen,
Cologne 1981 (Diss. 1974), no. 70 *Royalton-Kisch 1992, p. 87.
Exhibitions: Amsterdam 1935, no. 47 *Stockholm, 1956, no. 81
*Stockholm 1967, ? *Paris – Brussels – Amsterdam 1970-71, no. 80
*Stockholm 1992-93, no. 146.
See the previous drawing.
10
[Rembrandt]
#17
Sketch for the Etched Portrait of Jan Cornelisz Sylvius
NM 137/1973
No watermark.
Chain lines: 36 mm.
Inscribed in the lower left corner RimBrant, and numdered in pencil No 11,
pen and black ink. Mark of J. G. De la Gardie (Lugt 2722a). Inscribed on the
verso Portrait de Viellard a la plume. N. 826 Reimbrant, pen and brown ink.
Provenance: Prince Charles de Ligne (Bartsch 1794, p. 204, no. 15) *Duke
Albert of Sachsen-Teschen *Count J. G. De la Gardie (Lugt 2722a) *Gift to
the museum in 1973.
Bibliography: A. Welcker, "Een unbekend eerste ontwerp voor Rembrandts
ets van Jan Cornelis Sylvius (B. 280)", Oud Holland, LXIX (1954), pp. 229ff,
fig. 3 *Björklund & Barnard, Rembrandt's Etchings. True and False, London
& Paris 1955, under no. 46E *Amsterdam & Rotterdam, Rembrandt
Tentoonstelling. Etsen, 1956, under no. 57 (K.G. Boon) *K.G. Boon & Chr.
White, Hollstein’s Dutch and Flemish etchings, engravings and woodcuts,
XVIII: Rembrandt van Rijn, Amsterdam 1969, under no. 280 *Chr. White,
Rembrandt as an Etcher, London 1969, p. 127, fig. 169 *Benesch 1973, no.
762a, fig. 961 *B. Welzel in in Rembrandt: the Master and his Workshop,
11
New Haven & London 1991, p. 228, fig. 22b *Royalton-Kisch 1992, pp.
116f, fig. 46b *M. Royalton-Kisch, “Rembrandt’s drawings for prints: Some
observations”, Rembrandt and his Pupils (G. Cavalli-Björkman ed.),
Stockholm 1993, pp.177ff *M. Royalton-Kisch, in Rembrandt the
Printmaker (exh cat.), Zwolle 2000, pp. 70, 223f.
Exhibitions: Stockholm 1956, no. 96 *Stockholm 1992-93, no. 148.
Preparatory drawing (in reverse) for the etching of 1646 (Bartsch 280). The
portrait was posthumous, as Sylvius had died in 1638. A portrait was
painted for the widow in 1645, perhaps by a pupil.10 However, there is a
preparatory by Rembrandt in the National Gallery, Washington, quite close
in style to the present drawing.11 These portraits were probably based on
studies made in connection with Rembrandt’s etched portrait of 1633
(Bartsch 266).
The drawing was dated in 1646 by Benesch, but a date as early as about
1640 has deen proposed by Welcker and Boon. The sketch shows the final
arrangement of the etching, including the position of the two verses below.
The main difference is the absence of the outstreched hand casting a
shadow outside the frame. This was introduced in a second preparatory
drawing in the British Museum.12 The present drawing shows the peculiar
calligraphy of initial studies, a kind of tentative scribble, in which the pen is
seldom lifted from the paper. The second drawing is concerned with the
distribution of light and shadow which is achieved with short strokes and
hatchings, aided by wash.
10
no. 237: Probably by Eeckhout.
11
Benesch 1973, III, no. 762.
12
Benesch 1973, III, no. 763; Royalton-Kisch 1992, no. 46.
12
[Rembrandt]
#18
Three Cottages by a Road
Pen and brown ink, brown wash, corrections with white body-colour on the
cottage to the left, 182 x 242 mm
NM 2087/1863
No watermark.
Numbered in the upper right corner 1886 (Sparre), pen and drown ink.
Provenance: C. G. Tessin (List 1739-42, p. 46v?) *Kongl. Biblioteket (Cat.
Bibliography: G. Upmark, Stockholmer Handzeichnungen, Stockholm 1893,
no. 18 *F. Lippmann, Original Drawings by Rembrandt. Reproduced in the
Colours of the Originals, II. Series (Continued dy C. Hofstede de Groot), The
Hague 1898-1901, no. 14 *Hofstede de Groot 1906, no. 1612 *The Vasari
Society, 1907-1908, 3:24 *M. Eisler, Rembrandt als Landschaftler, Munich
1918, p. 53 *G. Wengström, "Rembrandts landskapsskisser i
Nationalmuseum", Nationalmusei årsbok, 1921, pp. 117f *Kruse &
Neumann 1920, no. VII:1 *Kruse & Neumann 1921, *O. Benesch,
Rembrandt, Werk und Forschung, Wien 1935, p. 32 *G. Wimmer,
Rembrandts Landschaftszeichnungen, Frankfurt 1935, p. 16 *Benesch
1954-57, no. 795 *S. Slive, Drawings of Rembrandt, New York 1965, no.
231 *Benesch 1973, no.795, fig. 995 *M. Bernhard, Rembrandt
Handzeichnungen, Munich 1976, no. 280 *E. Starcky, "Quelques dessins de
Rembrandt dans les Collections du Louvre: problèmes du cronologie", La
Revue du Louvre, 4 (1985), p. 261 *G. Goldner, European Drawings I:
13
Catalogue of the Collections, J. Paul Getty Museum of Art, Malibu 1988, p.
258 *E. Starcky, Rembrandt et son école. Dessins du Musée du Louvre,
Paris 1988-89 (Exh. cat.), under no. 19 *B. Bakker, “Langhuis en stolp in
Rembrandt’s farm drawings and prints”, Rembrandt’s Landscapes: Drawings
and Prints (exh. cat.), Washington 1990, p. 54.
Exhibitions: Stockholm 1956, no. 107 *Rotterdam, Museum Boymans Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum, Rembrandt tekeningen, 1956, no. 99 *Wien,
Albertina, Rembrandt, 1956, no. 49 *Stockholm 1967, no. 283 *Paris Brussels - Amsterdam, 1970-71, no. 81 *Washington, National Gallery of
Art, Rembrandt's Landscapes. Drawings and Prints, 1990, no. 2
*Stockholm 1992-93, no. 144 *Leiden, Stedelijk Museum de Lakenhal,
Rembrandt’s Landscapes, 2006, no. 20.
A drawing of two similar cottages are in the Getty Museum, Malibu.13 The
style is identical, the difference being the use of wash in the present
drawing that lends it a character of finished composition. Benesch brought
together a group of drawings in various collections with similar
characteristics, dating them all around 1641, comparing them to a series of
etching of that period (Bartsch 219-228).14
However, the drawings could very well have been made some years before
Rembrandt executed similar motifs in etching. Recently Cynthia Schneider
has pointed to the stylistic affinity with drawings of the mid 1630s, in
particular two landscape drawings in silver point in Rotterdam and Berlin.15
They depict the same type of cottages, which are not found in the vicinity of
Amsterdam, but which he could have seen in the eastern provinces.
Rembrandt travelled with Saskia to Friesland after their engagement in
1633, when he drew her portrait in silver point. He probably also visited
these part of the country 1634 and 1635, as H. Bevers pointed out, dating
the Berlin drawing c. 1633-35.16
13
Formerly at Chatsworth: Benesch 1973, IV, no. 796; Goldner, op.cit., no. ;
Benesch 1973, IV, nos. 794-797, 800.
15
Schneider in the exh. cat., Washington 1990, p. 75. The Rotterdam drawing: Benesch 1973, II, no. 341
(about 1637); J. Giltaij 1988, no. 11 (1636-37). The Berlin and Rotterdam drawings are thoroughly
discussed in Bevers 2006, no. 6.
16
Bakker, loc.cit; and Bevers 2006., p. 41.
14
14
[Rembrandt]
#19
The Calvary
Pen and brown ink, brown wash, white body-colour. 248 x 212 mm.
NM 2006/1863
Arched at the top. The framing lines in brown ink are drawn freehand and
apparently by the artist. The lower right corner as well as some small losses
along the right edge are filled in.
No watermark.
Chain lines: 23-25 mm.
Numbered in the lower right corner 63 (struck out), and on the mount 1810
(Sparre), pen and brown ink. Mark of the Royal Collection (Lugt 1638).
Provenance: Roger de Piles? *Crozat (Mariette, p. 101) *C. G. Tessin (List
1739-42, p. 46v; Cat. 1749, livre 15, no. 69) *Kongl. Biblioteket (Cat.
Bibliography: Hofstede de Groot 1906, no. 1558 *Kruse & Neumann 1920,
no.II:3 *Kruse & Neumann 1921, *A. Romdahl, “Rembrandts teckningar i
Nationalmuseum. Någran anmärkningar till John Kruses katalog”,
Nationalmusei årsbok, 1021, pp. 95f *A. M. Hind, A Catalogue of
Rembrandt's Etchings, London 1923, p. 74, under no. 123 *H. Hell, "Die sp
äten Handzeichnungen Rembrandts" , Repertorium für Kunstwissenschaft,
15
51, 1930, p. 33 *Valentiner, II, 1934, no. 488 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt,
Werk und Forschung, Wien 1935, *F. Lugt, Musée du Louvre. Inventaire
général, III, 1939, p. 15, under no. 1138 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt,
Selected Drawings, London & New York 1947, no. 198 *J. Q. van RegterenAltena, Holländische Meisterzeichnungen, Basel 1948, pl. 21 *Benesch
1954-57, no. 924 *Benesch 1973, no. 924, fig. 1200 *P. Schatborn 1985,
under no. 36 *C. van Tuyll in Rembrandt dessinateur (exh. cat.), Paris
2006, p. 148.
Exhibitions: Amsterdam 1935, no. 82 *Stockholm 1956, no. 117
tekeningen, 1956, no. 201 *Munich 1956? * Stockholm 1967, ?
*Stockholm 1992-93, no. 149.
The drawing seems to have evolved in stages. A first sketch in light brown
ink has been reworked in a darker ink in many places, including the figure
of Christ, the woman below the cross, the soldiers to the right, the figures
in the extreme left foreground, the shrubbery on the right, and the arched
line at the top right. There are also traces of correction in white (now
transparent) in the area to the right of the cross. There the ink has been
smudged to create shading. The paper is scraped where the chest contour
of Christ is drawn.
There is a clear difference in the manner between the figures on the left,
especially the two standing women, and the rest. While the woman nearest
the cross is drawn with short, cautious strokes and the arms in particular
are unconvincing, the horse’s head nearby and the figures below are
rendered boldly with an undulating line. On the right, the manner is more
vigourous and the figures on the extreme left has been very extensively
reworked. One can imagine that the drawing was left unfinished and work
resumed later, or even that Rembrandt finished a drawing begun by
someone else. Obviously he did not feel the need to redo the area to the left
of the cross, it must have provided all the indication he needed. Benesch
dated the drawing about 1653, and connected it with the numerous
drawings and etchings treating the passion, executed in the early 1650s.
The drawing has been repetedly compared to a drawing of Christ between
the two thieves in the Louvre, and a Christ crucified in a private collection in
Paris.17
Schatborn has pointed to the similarity in the combination of the finely
drawn contours and hatchings with broader and less tidy pen strokes in the
present drawing and the drawing of “Susanna” in Amsterdam, as an
argument for dating that drawing around 1650.18
17
18
Benesch 1973, III, nos. 652, 653.
Benesch 1973, III, no. 592; Schatborn 1985., no. 36.
16
[Rembrandt]
#20
An Eye Operation
Pen and brown ink, brown wash, corrections with white body-colour.
244x190 mm
NM 2046/1863
Ruled framing lines in brown ink.
Watermark: Coat of arms with fleur-de-lis.
Chain lines: 24 mm.
Inscribed in the lower left corner R, and numbered in the lower right corner
1846 (Sparre) and 76 (struck out), pen and brown ink. Mark of the Royal
Collection (Lugt 1638).
Provenance: Crozat (Mariette, p. 101) *C. G. Tessin (List 1739-42, p. 46v;
Cat. 1749, livre 15, no. 14) *Kongl. Biblioteket (Cat. 1790, no. 1846)
*Kongl. Museum (Lugt 1638)
Bibliography: K. Madsen, Studier fra Sverige, Copehagen 1892, p. 65
*Michel 1893, p. 524 *F. Lippmann, Original Drawings by Rembrandt.
Reproduced in the Colours of the Originals, I. Series, Berlin 188-1892, no.
129 *W. von Seidlitz, "Rembrandts Zeichnungen", Repertorium für
Kunstwissenschaft, XVII (1984), p. 125 *Hofstede de Groot 1906, no.1602
*R. Graeff, Rembrandts Darstellung der Tobiasheilung, Stuttgart 1907, pp.
17
60f *F. Saxl, "Zu einigen Handzeichnungen Rembrandts", Repertorium für
Kunstwissenschaft, XXXI (1908), p. 234 *Kruse & Neumann 1920, no.
IV:16 *Kruse & Neumann 1921, no. IV:16 *A. Romdahl, "Rembrandts
teckningar", Nationalmusei Årsbok, 1921, p. 102 *O. Benesch,
“Rembrandt-Bibel”, Mitteiligungen der Gesellschaft für Vervielvältigende
Kunst, 1922, pp. 35f *Valentiner I, 1925, no. 254 *H. Kauffmann, "Zur
Kritik der Rembrandtzeichnungen", Repertorium für Kunstwissenschaft,
XLVII (1926/27), p. 159 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt, Werk und Forschung,
Wien 1935, p. 51 *Bibeln eller den Heliga Skrift med bilder av Rembrandt,
Stockholm 1954, pl. 110 *Benesch 1954-57, no. 1154, fig. 1376 *W.
Sumowski, Bemerkungen zu Otto Benesch Corpus der
Rembrandtzeichnungen, Bad Pyrmont 1961, p. 21 *S. Slive, Drawings of
Rembrandt, New York 1965, no. 133 *S.J., "Rembrandt's eye-operation",
Bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine, Vol. 45, no. 12 (December
1969), pp. 1396-98 *Benesch 1973, no. 1154, V, fig. 1451
Exhiditions: Amsterdam 1935, no. 50 *Stockholm 1956, no. 159
*Jerusalem, Israel Museum, Rembrandt, 1965, no. 43 *Stockholm 1967,
*Washington - Fort Worth - San Francisco, Dürer to Delacroix, 1986, no. 92
*Stockholm 1992-93, no. 150
The drawing was at an early date associated with Rembrandt’s many
versions of the healing of Tobit. In them the blind Tobit is always depicted
as a venerable, bearded old man seated in a chair, usually Tobias stands
behind him, while his mother applies the fish gall that works the cure. The
angel who helped Tobias to catch the fish is also present. However,
according to Tobias 11:11-13, this happened outdoors and Tobias applied
the gall. In the present drawing an ordinary interior is depicted, there is a
fireplace on the left, the man is beardless and the clothes are in dissaray,
and several more persons are present. Benesch therefore concluded that
the scene represented an operation to the head to remove “stones”,
calloses on the head that were believed to cause insanity, a subject
common in Netherlandish art since the 16th century. However, it could
represent an eye-operation, an interpretation advanced by several
historians of medicine.19 The surgeon would be the man standing behind the
patient, holding a cataract knife in the customary way between his teath.
Perhaps the candle in the right corner was added as a symbol of seing the
light.
Kruse follows Graeff in that the healing of Tobit sometimes was depicted as
an operation rather than an application of an ointment. Two drawings, in
Cleveland and Museum Fodor, Amsterdam, both show an instrument like a
knife used.20 But in both cases the man operated on is old and bearded, and
the angel is present. In our drawing, the summary outlines, the many
correction and hasty creation of shades by smudging the wet ink with a
finger indicates that this may be a sketch from life. There is little room for
calligraphic subtleties and details, with the exception of the seated figure
who would have been still in his chair. It is tempting to assume that
19
20
Cf. Graeff, op.cit., and the signature S.J., op.cit.
Benesch 1973, III, nos. 547, 548.
18
witnessing an eye-operation provided Rembrandt with a new approach to
the subject of the healing of Tobit.
Already Kruse stressed the stylistic affinity with the two drawings in
Cleceland and Amsterdam. The old woman with a hair-cloth, pointed chin
and a purse in her belt could be the same and is drawn in the same,
summary but precise manner. In the Cleveland drawing the woman
standing by herself to the right, drawn in a slightly different manner,
parallels the woman in the same position in the present drawing. Kruse’s
conclusion that they are contemporary seems justified. He suggests c.
1636, but reports that Saxl and Graeff prefers a later date, c. 1650.
Benesch date the two drawings 1642-44, while he places the Stockholm
drawing as late as 1651-52. The style of our drawing, and in particular the
woman on the right, is close to the drawing of Susanna in Amsterdam, and
if the date of around 1650 is correct, that date would also apply to this
drawing.21
21
P. Schatborn 1985, no. 36.
19
[Rembrandt]
#21
Woman Suckling a Child
NM 2055/1863
No watermark.
Chain lines: 20 mm.
Numbered in the lower right corner 1855 (Sparre) and 84 (struck out) in
pen and brown ink. Mark of the Royal Collection (Lugt 1638).
Provenance: Roger de Piles? *Crozat *C. G. Tessin (List 1739-42, p. 46v;
Bibliography: Hofstede de Groot 1906, no. 1594 *F. Saxl, "Zu einigen
Handzeichnungen Rembrandts", Repertorium für Kunstwissenschaft, XXXI
(1908), p. 234 *Kruse & Neumann 1920, no. IV:11 *Kruse & Neumann
1921, no. IV:11 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt, Werk und Forschung, Wien
1935, p. 49 *G. Paulsson, Konstverkets byggnad, Stockholm 1942, p. 98
*Konstrevy, 1954:4 (Cover ill.) *Benesch 1954-57, no. 1073, fig. 1293
*Chr. White, “Three drawings by Rembrandt”, Master Drawings, I:2 (1963),
p. 38 *O. Benesch, Collected Writings I, London 1970, p. 258 *Benesch
20
1973, V, no. 1073, fig. 1364 *D. Vogel-Köhn, Rembrandts
Kinderzeichnungen, Cologne 1981 (Diss. 1977), no. 91
Exhibitions: Stockholm 1956, no. 157 *Rotterdam, Moseum Boymans Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum, Rembrandt tekeningen, 1956, no. 95 *Wien,
Albertina, Rembrandt, 1956, no. 89 *Stockholm 1967, no. 272
*Washington - Fort Worth - San Francisco, From Dürer to Delacroix,1986,
no.91 *Stockholm 1992-93, no. 151
The mother and child are drawn with a few, bold strokes, showing
Rembrandt’s mastery in characterizing a motif with simple means. Another
sketch in the same manner, possibly of the same model, is in a British
private collction.22 This little study is probably cut out of a larger sheet, in a
way collectors often treated sheets with disparate sketches.
Most of Rembrandts drawings of mothers and children seem to date from
the late 1630s, but this one has been dated on stylistic grounds to the late
1650s.
22
Benesch 1973, IV, no. 707A (about 1646).
21
[Rembrandt]
#22
Woman Holding an Infant in her Arms
Pen in brown ink, retouched in pen and grey ink, 70 x 57 mm
NM 2054/1863
There are scrape markes around the head of the woman. Crudely drawn
framing lines in brown ink.
No watermark.
Chain lines: 25 mm.
Numbered in the lower right corner 1854 (Sparre), pen and brown ink. Mark
Provenance: Roger de Piles? *Crozat *C. G. Tessin (List 1739-42, p. 46v;
Bibliography: Hofstede de Groot 1906, no. 1593 *F. Saxl, "Zu einigen
Handzeichnungen Rembrandts", Repertorium für Kunstwissenschaft, XXXI
(1908), p. 234 *Kruse & Neumann 1920, no. IV:30 *Kruse & Neumann
1921, no. IV:30 (probably school drawing) *O. Benesch, Rembrandt, Werk
und Forschung, Wien 1935, p. 55 *Benesch 1954-57, no. 1084 *Benesch
1973, IV, no. 1084, fig. 1378
22
Exhibitions: Vienna, 1956, no. 114 (not exhibited) *Stockholm 1992-93,
no. 152
The character of the original pen sketch has been compromised by later
reworking. There is hatching in grey ink to the right of the child, along the
womans profile, and some very crude lines between her head and that of
the child, as well as at the upper left and along the womans back. In
addition there are also scrape marks all around the womans head. In spite
of all this, it appears to be a study in Rembrandt’s late, summary and
somewhat angular manner. Benesch dates it 1654-55.
23
[Rembrandt]
#23
Christ Among the Doctors
Pen and brown ink, 190x230 mm
NM 2005/1863
No watermark.
Chain lines: 23 mm.
Numbered in the lower right corner 1809 (Sparre) and 68 (struck out) in
pen and brown ink. Mark of the Royal Collection (Lugt 1638).
1638)
the Colours of the Originals, II. Series (Continued by C. Hofstede de Groot),
Saxl, "Zu einigen Handzeichnungen Rembrandts", Repertorium für
Kunstwissenschaft, 31, Berlin 1938, p. 336 *Kruse & Neumann 1920, no.
II:4 *Kruse & Neumann 1921, no. II:4 *Valentiner I, 1925, no. 347 *E.
W. Bredt, Rembrandt-Bibel, Munich 1921, II, p. 25 *O. Benesch,
Rembrandt, Werk und Forschung, Wien 1935, p. 55 *Benesch 1954-57, no.
24
936 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt as a Draughtsman, London 1960, no. 72 *S.
Slive, Drawings of Rembrandt, New York 1965, no. 236 *O. Benesch,
Collected Writings I, London 1970, p. 95 *Benesch 1973, V, no. 936, fig.
1213 *H. Hoekstra, Rembrandt en de Bijbel, 1980, p. 77 *E. Starcky,
“Essai sur le gôut pour les dessins de Rembrandt en France au XVIIIe
siècle”, Rembrandt and his Pupils (G. Cavalli-Björkman, ed.), Stockholm
1993, pp. 202f (not Rembrandt).
Exhibitions: Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum, Rembrandt tentoonstelling, 1935,
no. 83 *Stockholm 1956, no. 155 *Rotterdam, Museum Boymans Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum, Rembrandt tekeningen, 1956, no. 205 *Wien,
Albertina, Rembrandt, 1956, no. 105 *Stockholm 1967, no. 298
Christ is seated on a bench surrounded on two sides by the doctors, who
focus their attention on him. On the left other people are approaching. The
vast space of the Temple is suggested with a few pen stroken, the upper
part of two persons show that a stair ascends from a lower level in the back.
The subject is also treated in an etching of 1652 (Bartsch 65) and in a
drawing in the Louvre.23 The setting is similar in all three cases, and the
figures are rendered without much modelling both in the etching and the
drawings. In the Louvre drawing the scene is turned so that Christ faces the
doctors, which resembles the treatment of the motif in an etching of 1630
(Bartsch 66), which is possibly the point of departure for the present
composition. The etching of 1652 is more like the present drawing, but the
space has been narrowed, concentrationg on the main figures and their
reactions. The drawing has been partly reworked in a darker ink, basically
strengthening some outlines without introducing any modifications. The only
exception would be that a figure behind the tall man standing erect in the
middle has “vanished”: visible is the foot and leg of a man walking and a
very thin line suggesting a back.
The summarily treated of forms in these drawings can be compared to the
drawing of Homer reciting in the Jan Six album, dated 1652 by the artist. 24
It confirms that this manner is representative of Rembrandt’s drawing style
at the time.
23
24
Benesch 1973, V, no. 885.
Benesch 1973, V, no. 913.
25
[Rembrandt]
#24
Christ and the Adulteress?
Pen and brown ink, 189x250 mm
NM 1998/1863
Restoration of minor losses in the upper right corner and at the upper edge.
Watermark: Foolscap.
Chain lines: 23 mm.
Numbered in the lower right corner 1803 (Sparre) and 182 (struck out), pen
1638)
The Hague 1898-1901, no. 12 *Hofstede de Groot 1906, no. 1554 *Kruse
& Neumann 1920, no. II:5 *Kruse & Neumann 1921, no. II:5 *E. W.
Bredt, Rembrandt-Bibel, Munich 1921, II, p. 64 *Valentiner I, 1925, no.
406 *J.L. van Rijckevorsel, Rembrandt en de Traditie, Rotterdam 1932, p.
185 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt, Werk und Forschung, Wien 1935, p. 62 *O.
Benesch, Rembrandt, Selected Drawings, London & New York 1947, no. 266
*Benesch 1954-57, no. 1038 *S. Slive, Drawings of Rembrandt, New York
26
1965, no. 299 *K. Clark, Rembrandt and the Italian Renaissance, New York
1960, pp. 165f, 178, 189, fig. 170 *O. Benesch, Collected Writings I,
London 1970, p. 242 *Benesch 1973, no. 1038, fig. 1322 *E. Starcky,
“Essai sur le gôut pour les dessins de Rembrandt en France au XVIIIe
siècle”, Rembrandt and his Pupils (G. Cavalli-Björkman, ed.), Stockholm
1993, pp. 202f.
Exhibitions: Amsterdam, 1935, no. 87 *Stockholm 1956, no. 156
tekeningen, 1956, no. 212, fig. 62 *Wien, Albertina, Rembrandt, 1956, no.
137 *Stockholm 1967, no. 269 *New York 1968, no. 66? *Stockholm
1992-93, no.
The drawing has been interpreted as representing the story of Christ and
the adulteress as told in John 8:3-5 (a controversial passage, that seems to
be a later insertion into the text). She has been convicted and is led off to
be stoned. In response to the pharisee’s questions, Christ is kneeling to
write on the ground, avoiding to answer. When pressed further he says: “He
who is without guilt cast the first stone”. According to H.-M. Rothermund,
the prevalence in Rembrandt´s oeuvre of subjects like this one, stressing
Christ as a teacher and healer, may suggest a connection with pius lay
movements like the “doopsgezinden”.25
The subject is rarely depicted in art and its identification not absolutely
clear. Although the persons and their actions fit well with the story, it looks
like a grave is opening in front of Christ and that he is not writing, but
pointing (and what is the rectangle in the foreground?). The woman could
be a mourner, and the resurrection of Lazarus comes to mind.
The drawing is similar in style to the previous drawing, and to other
drawings of the first half of the 1650s. K. Clark considered the penmanship
derived from Venetian quattocento masters (Carpaccio, Gentile Bellini),
noting the classicist influences on the composition in the symmetry and the
opposition of figures seen from the back and front.
25
H.-M. Rothermund, “Rembrandt und die religiösen Laienbewegungen in den Niederlanden seiner Zeit”,
Nederlands Kunsthistorisch Jaarboek, 4 (1952/53), pp. 146f.
27
[Rembrandt]
#25
The Arrest of Christ
Pen and brown ink, brown wash, grey wash in the sky, corrections with
white body colour, 205 x 301 mm
NM 2002/1863
Ruled framing lines in brown ink. In addition there are lines drawn freehand
by the artist along the botton and left side.
No watermark.
Chain lines: 26 mm.
Numbered in the lower right corner 1806 (Sparre) and 56 (struck out), pen
1638)
Saxl, "Zu einigen Handzeichnungen Rembrandts", Repertorium für
Kunstgeschichte, 31, Berlin 1908, p. 336 *C. Hofstede de Groot,
Rembrandt-Bijbel, Amsterdam 1906-10, II, no. 25 *C. Neumann, Aus der
Werkstatt Rembrandts, München 1918, p. 123, fig. 44 *Kruse & Neumann
1920, no. II:1 *Kruse & Neumann 1921, no. II:1 *E. W. Bredt,
Rembrandt-Bibel, Munich 1921, II, p. 11 *H. Hell, "Die späten
Handzeichnungen Rembrandts" , Repertorium für Kunstwissenschaft, 51,
Berlin 1930, p. 32 *Valentiner, II, 1934, no.456 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt,
28
Werk und Forschung, Wien 1935, p. 63 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt, Selected
Drawings, London & New York 1947, no. 273 *Benesch 1954-57, no. 1044
*O. Benesch, Rembrandt as a Draughtsman, London 1960, no. 98 *S.
Slive, Drawings of Rembrandt, New York 1965, no. 230 *O. Benesch,
Collected Writings, I, London 1970, p. 98 *Benesch 1973, V, no. 1044, fig.
1328.
Exhibitions: Amsterdam, 1935, no. 84 *Stockholm 1956, no. 161
tekeningen, 1956, no. 203, fig. 51 *Wien, Albertina, Rembrandt, 1956, no.
138 *Stockholm 1967, no. 297 *Washington - Fort Worth - San Francisco,
Dürer to Delacroix, 1986, no. 90 *Stockholm 1992-93, no. 159
*Stockholm, 2005, no. 197.
There is no known painting with this theme, but three drawings show an
extended interest in it. They are, if indeed autograph, relatively late works,
produced within the course of a decade, and show a gradual change in the
motif and a refinement of its meaning.
The earliest drawing, in Berlin, has been dated around 1651-52.26 It
represents the actual betrayal, in accordance with the first two gospels. The
composition is remarkable in the strong contrast between the lit area where
Judas kisses Christ, and the dark area with the soldiers, where the ear of
one of them was cut off. A later drawing, dated around 1656-57 by
Benesch, follows John 18:6 in showing how those who are to apprehend
Christ fell to the ground when he declared himself.27 His divinity is
manifested by the light that emmanates from him and he is also drawn
larger than the other figures. An episode from Mark 14:51-52 was also
added in the foreground, the young man who was laid hold of but escaped
naked. The soldier having his ear cut off is part of the group of soldiers but
less evident.
In the present drawing the emphasis has shifted again. Christ, from whom
the light emanates, dominates all. The outward conflict has been played
down in this friese-like arrangement, in spite of the fact that the episodes
with the soldier and the fleeing youth are included. They rather emphasise
the event as part of the divine plan, in keeping with the words of Christ in
John 18:11: “Put thy sword in the sheath: the cup which my father hath
given me, shall I not drink it?”
The angular, rough hewn-forms executed with a reed pen indicate a late
work, the usual assumption being a date around 1659-60. The other two
drawings are probably not by Rembrandt, but the components of the
composition are so similar that the two drawing must be strongly influenced
by the present drawing or reflect earlier stages of the composition.
26
Berlin: Benesch 1973, V, no. 882. The drawing is not included in H. Bevers catalogue of Rembrandt’s
drawings in the Kupferstichkabinett (2006).
27
Count Seilern: Benesch 1973, V, no. 1022.
29
[Rembrandt]
#26
Homer Dictating to a Scribe
Pen, point of brush in brown ink, brown wash, correction in white bodycolour. Upper corners rounded, and the top slightly arched, 149 x 168 mm.
NM 1677/1875
First a light ink has been used and then a darker one. The white body colour
has been applied afterwards. The white colour has oxidized in places and
become transparent in others. In some places where it has been applied
thickly, it has partly peeled off. Some very fine lines in black reinforce the
eyes, nose and mouth of the old man.
Laid down.
Inscribed in the lower left corner 1/r., pencil. On the verso, on the cardbord
support, the collectors mark of J. T. Sergel (Lugt 2339b), numbered No 121,
pen and brown ink, for the sale in 1875. Numbered /15/v, pencil, indicating
the number of the portfolio when it arrived at the museum.
Provenance: J. T. Sergel.
Bibliography: J. Kruse, “Ein neuentdeckte Homerus-Zeichnung von
Rembrandt in Nationalmuseum zu Stockholm”, Oud Holland, 27 (1909), pp.
221f *F. Schmidt-Degener, Bredius Feest Bundel, 1915 no. 11 *G. J.
Hoogewerff, “Rembrandt en een italiaanische maecenas”, Oud Holland, 35
30
(1917), pp. 129-148 *C. Ricci, Rembrandt in Italia, Milan 1918, p. 41
*Kruse & Neumann 1920, no. V:4 *Kruse & Neumann 1921, no. V:4
*Valentiner II, 1934, no. 567 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt, Werk und
Forschung, Wien 1935, p. 68 *J. Rosenberg, Rembrandt, Cambridge, Mass.
1946, p. 168, fig. 244 *R. Hamann, Rembrandt, 1948, pp. 189, 191
*Benesch 1954-57, no. 1066 *C. Müller-Hofstede, Kunstchronik, 9 (1956),
p. 94 *W. Sumowski, “Nachträge zum Rembrandtjahr 1956”,
Wissenschaftl. Zeitschr. d. Humbolt-Universität zu Berlin, VII (1957/58), p.
227, fig. 33 *O. Benesch, "Rembrandt and Ancient History", Art Quarterly,
(1959), p. 328 *H. Gerson, Rembrandt. Paintings, Amsterdam 1968, no.
371a *B. Haak, Rembrandt, 1969, p. 311 *J. R. Buendia, "En turnu exp.
R.", Goya, 95 (1970), p. 279 *O. Benesch, Collected Writings I, London
1970, p. 225, fig. 186 *Benesch 1973, V, no. 1066, fig. 1352 *G.
Schwartz, Rembrandt, his Life, his Paintings, Harmonsworth 1985, p. 316,
fig. 366a *M. Royalton-Kisch, “Rembrandt’s sketches for his paintings”,
Master Drawings, 27 (1989), pp. 141f, fig. 26
Exhiditions: Stockholm, 1956, no. 186 *Rotterdam, Museum Boymans Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum, Rembrandt tekeningen, 1956, no.254 *Wien,
Albertina, Rembrandt, 1956, no. 146 *Stockholm 1967, no. 299 *New
York 1968, no. 68 *Stockholm 1992-93, no. 160
As noted above, the drawing was begun with a light brown ink, and
continued in a darker ink. White body colour is in part applied with a fine
brush to add precision to the summary, broad pen strokes. This is
particularly evident in the face of the scribe, where it is applied on top of
broad ink strokes to define eyes and mouth. Other applications of white
seem to be correction that have later turned semi-transparent. The dull,
dark brown washes in the area behind and above the old man seems alien
and was probably added later, but in that case it must be true of the white
body-colour on the sleve too, since it covers some of the wash.
The drawing may be connected with a painting of Homer dictating, painted
for the Italian collector Antonio Ruffo. Documents show that a half finished
painting was sent to Ruffo for aproval in November 1662, who returned it to
be finished.28 The painting was later damaged by fire, a fragment with only
Homer is in the Mauritzhuis in the Hague.29
No drawing is mentioned in the documents, but it reasonable to assume
that ideas on the subject were exchanged before the painting was begun.
The present drawing may have been a sketchy model, sent to Ruffo for
appoval. The fact that it is from the collection of the Swedish sculptor Johan
Tobias Sergel would speak in favour of that assumption, since much of his
collection of drawings was formed in Rome in the 1770s. However Sergel
could also have come across it in England or Sweden, or his friend
Ehrensvärd could have found it in Holland. There are many possibilities. The
character of the drawing makes it more likely a part of the design process
than a finished model. The drawing could reflect the first version of the
composition. Ruffo returned the painting in order to have changes made.
According to an inventory of 1737, there were two scribes and not one, and
28
W. Strauss & M. van den Meulen, The Rembrandt documents, New York , pp. 508f.
no. 483.
29
31
Homer’s head is seen more in profile in the drawing than in the preserved
fragment of the painting. The drawing was most likely made in 1661.
32
[Rembrandt]
#27
Girl Asleep in a Window
Pen, point of brush in brown ink, brown wash, correction in white bodycolour, 163 x 175 mm
NM 2084/1863
Ruled framing lines in black ink.
No watermark.
Chain lines: 25 mm.
Numbered in the lower right corner in pen and brown ink 1883 (Sparre).
Mark of the Royal Collection (Lugt 1638).
1638)
Bibliography: K. Madsen, Studier fra Sverige, Copenhagen 1892, pp. 66ff
*Hofstede de Groot 1906, no. 1590 *C. Neumann, Rembrandts
Handzeichnungen, München 1919, no. 63 *Kruse & Neumann 1920, no.
IV:3 *Kruse & Neumann 1921, no. IV:3 *Valentiner II, 1934, no. 711 *O.
Benesch, Rembrandt, Werk und Forschung, Wien 1935, p. 61 *A. M. Hind,
Rembrandt, Oxford 1938, p. 50 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt, Selected
Drawings, London & New York 1947, no. 248 * Benesch 1954-57, no. 1101
33
*H. Gerson, Rembrandt. Gemälde, Amsterdam 1968, p.104, fig. a
*Benesch 1973, V, no. 1101, fig. 1392 *Royalton-Kisch 1992, p. 134 *H.
Bevers, in Drawings by Rembrandt and his Pupils. Telling the difference
(exh cat.), Los Angeles 2009, p. 122, fig. 17a.
Exhibitions: Stockholm 1933, no. 49 *Amsterdam 1935, no. 80
*Stockholm 1956, no. 171 *Rotterdam, Museum Boymans - Amsterdam,
Rijksmuseum, Rembrandt tekeningen, 1956, no. 230 *Munich, 1956, no.?
*Stockholm 1967, no. 295 *New York, 1969, no. 65 *Kupferstickkabinett,
Berlin – Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Rembrandt: The Master and his
Workshop. Drawings and Etchings, 1991-92, no. 35 *Stockholm 1992-93,
no. 157
The woman is sitting with her eyes closed and the arm resting on the
window sill. The details of her face and the illuminated part of her dress are
rendered with sparing, fine lines, and some contours have been lightened
with white body colour, in particular the upper lip has been made lighter
with a small touch of white. Other forms are summed up with broad strokes
of the reed pen and brush. The transparent wash gives depth.
A second drawing in the same manner in Stockholm seems to be of the
same model (See the next no). The model is probably Hendrickje Stoffels,
who lived with Rembrandt from 1649 on. A third drawing possibly also
depicting her is in the British Museum.30 Most likely they were made in the
second half of the 1650s, when also several portraits believed to be of her
were painted.31 Like the paintings, broad strokes define the outlines and the
masses of light and dark.
30
Royalton-Kisch 1992, no. 58.
nos. 111, 118, 437.
31
34
[Rembrandt]
#28
Girl in the Window
Pen, point of brush in brown ink, brown wash, corrections with white bodycolour, 165x123 mm
NM 2085/1863
Horisontal fold near the top. Framing lines in brown ink.
No watermark.
Chain lines 25 mm.
Numbered in the lower left corner 1884 (Sparre) and at the bottom centre
257, pen and brown ink. Mark of the Royal Collection (Lugt 1638).
1638)
Bibliography: K. Madsen, Studier fra Sverige, Copenhagen 1892, pp. 66ff
*Hofstede de Groot 1906. no. 1591 *Kruse & Neumann 1920, no. IV:2
*Kruse & Neumann 1921, no. IV:2 *Valentiner II, 1934, no.712 *O.
Benesch, Rembrandt, Werk und Forschung, Wien 1935, p. 61 *A. M. Hind,
Rembrandt, Oxford 1938, p. 50 *Benesch 1954-57,no. 1102 *W. Scheidig,
Rembrandt als Zeichner, Leipzig 1962, no. 135 *Benesch 1973, no. 1102,
35
fig. 1393 *Berlin-Amsterdam-London, Der Meister und seine Werkstatt,
1991-92, under no. 35, fig. 35a *Royalton-Kisch 1992, p. 134.
Exhibitions: Amsterdam, 1935, no. 81 *Stockholm, 1956, no. 172
The model is the same as in the previous drawing. The position at a window
is the same, but here the woman is leaning her head in the hand. As a
consequence her face is shaded, but in general the outlines are simplified
and the contrast between light and dark greater. In the background the
wash has been applied in a more fluid way. There are corrections in white
on the raised hand and the cheek, and also on the sleeve.
36
[Rembrandt]
#29
Farmstead Beneath Trees
Pen and brown ink, brown wash, on coarse, felt-like grey paper, 129 x 284
mm
Verso: Landscape with a view down a road, pen and brown ink
NM 54/1919
Vertical fold left of centre (best visible on the verso)
No watermark.
Inscribed in the lower left corner Rimbrant (Tessin), and numbered in the
lower right corner 314, pen and brown ink.
Provenance: Roger de Piles? *Crozat (Cat. 1741, s. 101) *C. G. Tessin (Cat.
1785, no. 237-243?) *C. H. Tersmeden *Acquired for the Museum by
Nationalmusei vänner (the Friends of the Museum)
37
Bibliography: G. Wengström, in Festskrift. Nationalmusei Vänners tioå
rsjubileum, 1921, p. 121 *O. Benesch, Rembrandt, Werk und Forschung,
Wien 1935, p. 57 *Benesch 1954-57, no. 1289 *Benesch 1973, no. 1289,
figs. 1593 -1594 *J. and M. Guillaud, Rembrandt: La figure humaine, Paris
and New York 1986, fig. 97 *B. Bakker, “Het onderwerp van Rembrandts
ets De drie borenhuiszen”, Kroniek van het Rembrandthuis, 1990:1-2, pp.
21, 29, fig. 2 J. Garff, Tegninger af Rembrandt …, Copenhagen 1996, p. 20.
*M. Royalton-Kisch, ”Rembrandt’s landscape drawings”, Drawing: Masters
and Methods (D. Dethloff, ed.), London 1992,p. 122, fig. 22 *Landscapes of
Rembrandt. His Favourite Walks, Amsterdam & Paris 1998, pp. 341, 343v
Exhibitions: Stockholm 1956, no. 178 *Rotterdam, Museum Boymans Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum, Rembrandt tekeningen, 1956, no. 194 *Wien,
Albertina, Rembrandt, 1956, no.106 *Stockholm 1967, no. 287 *New York
- Boston -Chicago, 1969, no. 64 *Stockholm 1969, no. 71 *Washington,
National Gallery of Art, Rembrandt's Landscapes.Drawings and Prints, 1990,
no. 29 *Stockholm 1992-93, no. 156
Two farm houses under the trees is seen from across a canal. Behind them
the top of a haystack sticks up. A rider and two other figures are
approaching on the left, but the ink is different and they seem to have been
added later. The same place, some farm houses on the road to Sloten, is
also represented in drawings in Copenhagen and Paris.32 Bakker has
suggested that the place is identical with that of a drawing by Leupenius in
Rotterdam, dated 1666.33 The sketch on the verso is supposed to be the
same road but looking in the opposite direction, towards Amsterdam.34
The paper is unusually coarse, but lends itself well to the sparse and
vigorous hatchings with the reed pen, and it works also for the short,
undulating lines of the brief sketch on the verso. The same manner is seen
in drawings in Rotterdam and Amsterdam, both on a similar kind of paper.35
It is also close to a sketch in the Kunstakademie in Vienna. 36
An etching of three farm houses dated 1650 may also be connected with
Rembrandt’s studies along the same road.37 The drawings are usually dated
a few years later. In the Washington exhibition, the Stockholm drawing was
dated later still, in the second half ot the 1650. The Rotterdam drawing is
dated around 1653 by Giltaij, the one in Amsterdam 1660 or later by
Schatborn.
The Copenhagen drawing is on vellum which allows a finer pen and a freer
movement of the hand than the coarse paper of the Stockholm drawing.
However, in view of the identity of style and the fact that several of the
drawings depict the same place they must belong to the same period.
32
Copenhagen: Benesch 1973, VI, no. 1288; Garff, 1996, p. 20. Cf. Landscapes of Rembrandt, p. 343.
Giltaij 1988, no. 98; Sumowski, 7, 1983, no. 1559.
34
Landscapes of Rembrandt, p. 341, note 1.
35
Rotterdam: J. Giltaij 1988, no. 27: “cartridge paper”. This too seems to be a view of the road to Sloten.
Amsterdam: Schatborn 1985, no. 51: “kardoespapier/oatmeal paper”.
36
Benesch 1973, VI, no. 1364.
37
Bartsch 217; Cf. the Washington exh. cat., no. 20, and Bakker, op.cit.
33
38
[Rembrandt]
#30
Farmstead with a Canal in the Foreground
Pen and brown ink, brown wash, on brown, prepared paper, 107x177 mm
NM Anck. 374
Vertical tear near the lower left corner. Framing lines in brown ink. Some
brown spots in the sky.
Watermark: Coat of arms (fragment).
Inscribed in the lower right corner Rimbrant, and numbered 307, pen and
brown ink. Unidentified collectors mark in the lower left corner.
Provenance: Crozat (Cat. 1741, p. 101) *C. G. Tessin (Cat. 1785, no.
223?) *M. G. Anckarsvärd *A. Michelson *K. Michelson *Acquired by the
Museum in 1896
Bibliography: Hofstede de Groot 1906 *Kruse & Neumann 1920, no. VII:3
*Kruse & Neumann 1921, VII:3 *G. Wengström, "Rembrandts
landskapsskisser i Nationalmuseum", Festskrift vid Föreningen
Nationalmusei Vänners tioårsjubileum, Stockholm 1921, p. 120 *O.
Benesch, Rembrandt, Werk und Forschung, Wien 1935, p. 57 *O. Benesch,
Rembrandt, Selected Drawings, London & New York 1947, no. 214 *
Benesch 1954-57, no. 1292 *Benesch 1973, VI, no. 1292, fig. 1599 *P.
Schatborn, "Van Rembrandt tot Crozat", Nederlands Kunsthistorisch
Jaarboek, 32 (1981), pp. 44f
Exhibitions: Amsterdam, 1935, no.67 *Stockholm 1956, no. 131
tekeningen, 1956, no. 171 *Munich, 1956, no? *Stockholm 1967, no. 286
*Washington - Fort Worth - San Francisco, Dürer to Delacroix, 1986, no. 93
39
Rembrandt’s landscape drawings range from spontaneous sketches done on
the spot to more worked out compositions. In the present drawings some
shrubs in the centre foreground have been cancelled with white body-colour
(now transparent). The vegetation has been moved to the right, possibly to
balance the trees on the left. There is a careful gradation between the
darker foreground, the middle ground, and the lightly sketched background
on the left.
The style is close to that of the previous drawing, the difference being a
smother paper and a finer pen. However, the earliest renderings of this type
of motif date from the early 1640s, as in an etching of a landscape with a
cottage and haybarn dated 1641 (Bartsch 225). The drawing could also be
compared with the landscape drawings dated around 1650, such as that of
farmhouses near a road in Berlin.38
38 38
H. Bevers 2006, no. 41.

Rembrandt - Nationalmuseum

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