Rembrandt Exhibition

Source: http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/r/rembran/painting/selfport/index.html

Today J., Mama's friend G., Mama and I took the bus to the Kunstforum at Potsdamer Platz in order to see the exhibitions of Rembrandt's paintings and drawings. We began in the Kupferstichkabinett, where small sketches (usually not much taller or wider than the breadth of a hand), often in silver pen or black chalk, were displayed. The motifs were sometimes ordinary people, often Biblical characters in particular scenes (e.g. Susanna and the Elders), and landscapes. The sketches were usually simple, bare outlines (sometimes, as Mama said, they were mainly intended to capture movement), sometimes with light or darkness added with chalk -- except where, occasionally, a face was worked out with a fine, concentrated detail suggestive of Leonardo da Vinci. At the right side of the room there were sketches by Rembrandt's students; Joachim made at least two wisecracks about how some of these obviously couldn't be by Rembrandt. I admit I was disappointed with some sketches, for being -- with all due respect -- crude. But there were about a dozen that I found delightful, and two or three that really "spoke to me." One of the delightful ones is that of a squalling child with a large unpretty face distorted by his temper, trying to wriggle out of the arms of his mother, whose eyebrows are pulled together with annoyance and whose mouth is a thin line with mingled effort and suppression of her annoyance; an old woman looks on impotently.

Then J. and I had a break in the cafeteria. When we were at the counter I made a remark about the unfortunate reality that older and more important people are usually served first (i.e. that the waiters are slightly snobby). I think that the "older and more important person" behind us heard; at any rate, he asked the waiter to serve us first, and he was smiling when I turned to give him a look of gratitude. On second thoughts, it might be more polite and respectful to let older persons "jump the queue."

Afterwards we descended (and then ascended) into thetwo special exhibit halls. In the anteroom between them it was pretty hilarious to see a numerous semi-circle of museum-goers contemplating a large chronology of Rembrandt's life as if it were another painting. I must say, by the way, that it annoys me when people in a museum briefly favour a painting with a severe stare, then bend down to quickly read the description of the painting, then move on. But in another way it's amusing. Altogether it was interesting to observe the live people in the museum as well. Nowhere outside of a museum have I seen artistic-looking young men with free wavy hair who seem to come straight out of an old painting or book. Today there was one middle-aged gentleman in a black suit who (with one arm tucked behind his back) confidently strode out in front of a painting, as if the loose crowd of people were not there, then whipped off his glasses to have a better look. Then there was one tall woman with a tight skirt, neutral pastel shirt, and reddish hair in a massive bun, which combined to create a timeless secretary look; she seemed to have a true enjoyment of art, as she took her time with each painting.

Anyway, to return to the art, I liked the atmosphere in the two painting exhibition rooms very well. The lighting was soft but sufficient; the walls were in a subdued dark green or red; and the golden and dark brown frames of the paintings, and still more the warm colours of the paintings themselves, were truly in harmony. The pitch of conversation was low, and while there were many people, it was still reasonably easy to look at the paintings. One of the paintings in these rooms is the one entitled "Artemisia," which is depicted at the top of this post. Then there were at least two self-portraits, many paintings of Biblical scenes (Jacob wrestling with the angel, Moses holding up the Ten Commandments, Joseph's dream, Jesus and Mary Magdalene, etc.), and many portraits. A large portrait of an old lady in a black dress and tight white cap is positively startling because the dark background and dress contrast so strongly with the bright white collar and pale face, and the hands that glow in a nearly ghostly way out of the middle; but this is, I think, common in portraits.

On the whole, I very much like the warmth and naturalness of Rembrandt's works, though I wouldn't say that he was my favourite painter. It is also interesting to see how his art bridges over into modern times. His sketches sometimes have a contemporary air; the apparent freedom with which he handled the brush also forms a contrast to the intricate detail and tiny brushwork of, as far as I know, most other painters up to and perhaps sometimes including the impressionists.