Renaissance & Baroque Art Assignment #4

                Rembrandt van Rijn was born in Leiden, a textiles and university town and he became a painter when he was 14.  He was the greatest painter in Holland. During his glorious years in Amsterdam,  Rembrandt's paintings were widely admired and accepted by many rich people.  He was a virtuoso manipulator of paint and more like a psychologist of the human condition because he could show the mood and vulnerability of human by depicting their watery eyes and jabbing strokes.  However, he was punished and his masterpiece had been cut up for being incompatible with modern taste and the special style of his works of art.

  In the 

painting, we can easily see what this man does— a rich fur businessman.  Because he is wearing his own product-- a high-priced fur coat, his identity becomes more obvious.  Rembrandt draws the background with deeper color and brings out the merchant’s character.  Nicolaes Ruts is a very intelligent businessman because he knows how to show people his products in a better way. Furthermore, from his tired face and the winkles around his eyes, we also know how diligent he is.  The artist tries to tell us what the successful merchant owns now is consistent with how hard he works all the time. And that’s why he is considered a businessman’s hero.  In addition, the figure’s gestures and posture, and even the small details on his serious face are showing a little impatience.  All of this further proves the fact that time is money for a businessman. 

The portrait of 83-year-old woman shows an unhappy face with drooping eyes and a frown.  It seems that the woman is not satisfied with her life or she is thinking of someone or something important because her eyes express a little sadness and lots of worry.  This painting gives me a feeling that she is a meticulous person in her life and always has more concerns for others than for herself.  

Unlike most other artists, Rembrandt slightly changes Samson’s image but still keeps the original story. In Rembrandt’s painting, Samson is not a naked strong man and likes a sleeping lion anymore.  He is depicted as a helpless and weak young person who is sleeping on the lap of an attractive woman called Delilah.  Samson dresses well, and at the same time, the yellow knot represents his love and trust in Delilah and becomes one of the keys in the painting.  However, the woman’s gestures and the look on her face are telling us a different story.  One of her hands seems ready to shear off the braids of Samson’s hair. Meanwhile, another hand is still gently touching his head as if she is comforting and making him sleep more deeply.  Rembrandt emphasizes Delilah’s right foot and toes by using the brightness of the light and shows the figures and story’s tensions further.  Moreover, the person who is holding the shape scissors and another one who is sneaking behind reveal a strong sense of betrayal as well.  Overall, the artist perfectly displays the basic sides of human nature—love and betrayal.