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 REMBRANDT
was the sixth son of a well-to-do miller of Leyden, Netherlands,
where he was born in 1606. He was educated at the University
of Leyden, and received his first lessons in art there, and at
Amsterdam and Haarlem. In 1630, at the age of 24, he settled
in Amsterdam and began an independent career as a painter, never
leaving that city until his death, 39 years later. With his first
wife, Saskia van Uilenberg, he received a considerable fortune,
lived with her happily for eight years till her death in 1642,
and formed a fine and valuable collection of Italian pictures,
engravings, marbles, armour, and works of art. He exhausted his
fortune, which at one time was 40,000 florins, became bankrupt
in 1656, the date of his second marriage, and passed the last
thirteen years of his life in distress, neglect, and severe work.
He died in 1669, at the age of 63, and was buried at Amsterdam
at the public expense. In the National Gallery are two self-portraits,
at the age of 30 and of 60.
Rembrandt was the chief painter of the Dutch School, and in
certain qualities, especially in chiaroscuro--the contrasts
of light and shade--has no equal in the range of art. His sombre,
powerful, and dreamy spirit is expressed in his works, which,
though without spiritual beauty, or elevation of thought, are
full of pathos, mystery, sympathy, and profound imagination.
His portraits, in reality and power, stand in the first rank
and have rarely been equalled. His engravings and etchings have
no equal in any school. His force and originality, his industry
and technical mastery, place him amongst the greatest masters
of art.
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| This biography is
reprinted from The New Calendar of Great Men. Ed. Frederic
Harrison. London: Macmillan and Co., 1920. |
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