The Rijksmuseum - Self-Portrait as the Apostle Paul, Rembrandt 1661
Rembrandt made this self portrait when he was fifty-five years old. On the left, beside his shoulder, he has signed his name and the year in which he made the painting: 1661. Rembrandt pictured himself in a total of about eighty paintings, etchings and drawings. He made most of these for himself as study material: to study a facial expression or to try out contrasts between light and shade. Sometimes he used himself as a 'model' representing someone else, as is the case here. He has pictured himself as a biblical character, the apostle St Paul.
Rembrandt has built up this painting, layer by layer, on top of a dark ground. The paint has been applied thinly in the dark areas, such as his coat and the shadows in his face. In areas that are fully lit, the paint is thick and loose.
The way the turban has been painted is characteristic of Rembrandt. He moulded the folds in the turban, as it were, in the paint. Using a hard brush, he smeared the viscous paint from left to right.
The Rijksmuseum - Self-Portrait as the Apostle Paul, Rembrandt 1661
Rembrandt made this self portrait when he was fifty-five years old. On the left, beside his shoulder, he has signed his name and the year in which he made the painting: 1661. Rembrandt pictured himself in a total of about eighty paintings, etchings and drawings. He made most of these for himself as study material: to study a facial expression or to try out contrasts between light and shade. Sometimes he used himself as a 'model' representing someone else, as is the case here. He has pictured himself as a biblical character, the apostle St Paul.
Rembrandt has built up this painting, layer by layer, on top of a dark ground. The paint has been applied thinly in the dark areas, such as his coat and the shadows in his face. In areas that are fully lit, the paint is thick and loose.
The way the turban has been painted is characteristic of Rembrandt. He moulded the folds in the turban, as it were, in the paint. Using a hard brush, he smeared the viscous paint from left to right.