This magnificent self-portrait represents the high art of self-fashioning; here the artist advances himself as imaginative, confident and capable. Rembrandt is dressed in an opulent 16th-century costume, and his pose and demeanor reference two well-known portraits: Raphael’s portrait of Baldassare Castiglione, c. 1514–15, and Titian’s portrait of Ludovico Ariosto, 1508–10. Rembrandt’s pictorial statement here is clear: he is an aspiring artist who counts himself in the company of esteemed painters who went before him, and he is familiar with the theoretical art writings of the day. These texts doubtless included Karel van Mander’s Schilder-boeck [Painter book], which contains artists’ biographies and elaborates on art theory. It also recognizes Raphael and Titian as great artists suitable for imitation. This etching serves as an engaging calling card in which the artist stakes his claim to artistic excellence and shares his sense of well being at this moment in his thriving career.
Details
- Artist Name: Rembrandt van Rijn (Dutch, 1606-1669)
- Title: Self-Portrait Leaning on a Stone Sill
- Date: 1639
- Medium: Etching and drypoint
- Edition: State I
- Dimensions: plate: 8-3/16 x 6-3/8 in. (20.8 x 16.2 cm); sheet: 8-3/16 x 6-3/8 in. (20.8 x 16.2 cm)
- Credit Line: Norton Simon Art Foundation
- Accession Number: M.1978.02.4.G
- Copyright: © Norton Simon Art Foundation
Object Information
Learning to Look: Line
- Norton Simon Museum, 2003-11-07 to 2004-02-23
The Familiar Face: Portrait Prints by Rembrandt
- Norton Simon Museum, 2009-12-04 to 2010-3-22
Rembrandt: Prints "of a Particular Spirit"
- Norton Simon Museum, 2017-12-08 to 2018-03-05
Eye-to-Eye with Rembrandt: Etched Portraits and Self-Portraits
- Norton Simon Museum, 1994-05-26 to 1995-01-15
Rembrandt Rarities
- Norton Simon Museum, 2006-04-28 to 2006-09-11
From Line into Image: Etchings by Rembrandt Van Rijn
- Norton Simon Museum, 1992-01-30 to 1992-09-06
Sources and Inspriation in Rembrandt's Etchings
- Norton Simon Museum, 1990-06-28 to 1991-02-24
Rembrandt Portrait Etchings
- Norton Simon Museum, 1986-05-22 to 1987-08-30
Rembrandt Etchings
- Norton Simon Museum, 1978-08-10 to 1980
- Farrell, John, Pasadena Star News, p. 25
- Campbell, Sara, Collector Without Walls: Norton Simon and His Hunt for the Best, 2010, cat. 1497 p. 413
- Hinterding, Erik; Rutgers, Jaco, The New Hollstein Dutch and Flemish Etchings, Engravings and Woodcuts, 1450-1700 Rembrandt, 2013, pp. 33-35, no. 171
Additional Artwork by Artist
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