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Two self portraits blended in one |
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No fewer than 38 leading works by Rembrandt, Caravaggio and a number of Dutch "Caravaggists" are on display at the exhibition. Many of them, including Bathsheba at Her Bath (1654), are on show for the first time. Preparing the exhibition was not easy. It took Rijksmuseum director Ronald de Leeuw, who came up with the idea, two years to extract this small but immensely rich collection of oils on canvas from public collections worldwide. Among the veritable masterpieces are Rembrandt's The Abduction of Ganymede (1635, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden) and Caravaggio's Omnia Vincit Amor (ca 1601-02, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin) and his most powerful work The Supper at Emmaus (1601, The National Gallery in London). |
It's a unique exhibition, bringing together, for the first time in art history, the two undisputed geniuses of northern and southern Baroque painting: Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669) and Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1571-1610).
Their works are on display in leading museums around the world, but invariably surrounded by those of painters of the same nationality: Rembrandt among other masters of the Dutch school, Caravaggio among other Italians.
Now, their most important paintings can finally be seen together in an exhibition that is all the more remarkable for being housed in Amsterdam's Van Gogh Museum, featuring the world's largest collection of works by the Impressionist painter. The exhibition runs until 18 June.
Indirect influence
Caravaggio and Rembrandt were near-contemporaries - Rembrandt was just four when Caravaggio died - but never met. Rembrandt may never even have seen a painting from the Italian master. Unlike many other Dutch painters at the time, Rembrandt didn't travel to Italy to learn from the Italian masters of perspective and light.
Yet, he may have been influenced by Caravaggio's dramatic use of chiaroscuro, the juxtaposition of light and obscurity to create contrast between the primary subject and its surroundings. Indirectly, that is, through the works of Dutch Caravaggists like Gerrit van Honthorst (ca.1590-1656). And, as befits a great genius, Rembrandt interpreted this technique in his own inimitable way to give it new meaning.
Many parallels
Many other parallels have been drawn between the two great masters. Both are famed for portraying biblical and mythological themes with the disturbing realism and forceful expression of emotions that are typical of Baroque Era art.
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The Supper at Emmaus (Caravaggio, 1601) |
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Belshazzar's Feast (Rembrandt, 1635) |
Billed as the 'first-ever confrontation between the two geniuses of 17th century Northern and Southern Baroque', the exhibition presents a series of paired paintings that share certain objects or themes. This enables visitors to make their own comparisons. But, intentional or not, it also seems to turn the exhibition into a contest: who is the better painter? The whole setup is such that it almost forces the visitor to make a choice, and more importantly, to reflect on the reasons why one is superior to the other.
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Omnia Vincit Amor |
The Abduction of Ganymede |
In the course of this reflection, the many differences between the two painters become more apparent: the softer light in Rembrandt's works, his rough strokes, his almost Impressionist style. Caravaggio's paintings, on the other hand, sometimes look airbrushed and therefore artificial. In the eye of the 21st-century beholder, Rembrandt may thus emerge as the more modern painter and even, despite his brush strokes and paint daubs, as the more realistic.
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Listen to a report from Dutch Horizons |
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Art is not a contest, but that doesn't mean that one should not compare. After all, throughout history, artists have competed with each other and built on each other's ideas.
Although the organisers' intention was clearly to present Rembrandt and Caravaggio as equals, one cannot escape the feeling that there's some kind of contest going on. A competition at the highest level which Rembrandt wins. But, please, use your own judgement. The Rembrandt-Caravaggio exhibition invites you to reflect on your own personal taste and, more importantly, look very closely at the masterpieces on display. And that is a joy in itself.
Tags: Amor, Amsterdam, Belshazzar, Caravaggio, exhibition, Ganymede, painting, Rembrandt, Van Gogh