July 11, 2006
By Emmanuel Mulaudzi
AN exhibition commemorating Dutch master Rembrandt van Rijn's 400th anniversary will be held at the Johannesburg Art Gallery from 15 July - his actual birthday.
Entitled Rembrandt 400 years the exhibition of the gallery's own Rembrandt pieces, consisting of 41 copper plate etchings, runs from 15 July until 17 September 2006. The works are in various etched or technical stages.
The etchings are part of a collection donated to the gallery by Howard Pim, after whom the Soweto township of Pimville is named. They are from a collection of 550 prints given to the gallery in 1934.
Pim, an accountant who originally came to South Africa from England in 1890 to work for Cecil John Rhodes, served as governor of the University of Fort Hare and was also the co-founder of the South African Institute of Race Relations.
17th century themes
Rembrandt was known for portraying popular 17
th century themes in his prints, paintings and drawings, says exhibition curator Sheree Lissoos. Typical topics included biblical scenes, portraits, self-portraits, figure studies, genre scenes and landscapes, with an "almost always an overriding humanity of artistic vision".
Rembrandt experimented with etching using a mixture of print techniques, an etching needle, dry-point needle and burin, often in a single work.
His principal print mediums will show the dramatic chiaroscuro (light and dark effects) prevalent in most of his work, the expressive use of line and the velvety effects for which he became famous, Lissoos says.
One of his most famous pieces, on display in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam is the The Militia Company of Captain Frans Banning Cocq, better known as The Night Watch.
Besides being a painter, Rembrandt, who lived from 1606 to 1669, was "a master printmaker and one of the pre-eminent etchers in western history", Lissoos adds.
"The main body of the exhibition will demonstrate that Van Rijn was essentially a grand designer of pictorial theatre, creating work that combined good story-telling with emotional impact," Lissoos says.
Also on display will be selected original prints by Rembrandt's predecessors and pupils such as Albrecht Altdorfer (1480-1538), Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528) and Lucas van Leyden (1494-1533), as well as work by a few of his contemporaries like Jan Lievens (1607-74), Jan Both (1618-52) and Jacob van Ruisdael (1628-82).
"It is very beautiful… everybody wants to own a Rembrandt", concludes Lissoos.
Official opening
The exhibition, which is in partnership with the Royal Netherlands Embassy, will be officially opened by art historian and author Dr Ben Broos 3.30pm on 15 July.
An illustrated catalogue, also sponsored by the Royal Netherlands Embassy, will accompany the exhibition. The catalogue, which costs R50, will be on sale from 15 July at the gallery's shop.
For more information about the exhibition, contact Sheree Lissoos on 011 725 3130 ext 215.
The Johannesburg Art Gallery is at King George Street, Joubert Park, Johannesburg.
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