Self Portrait 1665
Among all the portraits of Rembrandt, self portraits play an very important role. The large amount of his self portraits is the most among all the painters in history. According to incomplete statistics, the self portraits of Rembrandt stored in museums all over the world are around 90, 60 of them are oil painting, 20 of them are Copper Etching, 10 are pencil sketch self portrait. According to his later encounter and the fact of his selling off his property, probably other self portraits are missing in personal hands. There was a theorist calculating that every single year, Rembrandt would paint two self portrait. As a result, the total amount of Rembrandt's self portraits is over 100.
His self portraits are not only numerous, but also higher quality as he grows older. Especially in the latter half of his life, the experience in real life makes him know much more about himself. Around the 60s, there are distinct personalities in his self portraits. Rembrandt pays much attention to the inner temperament of the face, so the audience can discover a potential inner language from it.
This self portrait was created by Rembrant in 1665 when the painter lost his wife, sold off his property and moved to Llsang J Lahat. At that time, Rembrandt declined a lot in his career. He could just be in charge of the Art Product Processing Company which was founded by Titus, the son of Rembrandt's ex-wife and Hendry Gee, as an "employee". He worked as a carrier carrying products. And this picture is the real image of him at that time.
Rembrandt, as a 54 years old man, is a sloven with the color palette and painting brush in his left hand and right hand on his hip which reflects his poverty and miserableness. Fat body, kerchief on his head and two bright piercing eyes make him seem like thinking about something deeply. He stands still in front of the sketching easel with no smile on his face. The background is diluted in order to highlight the upper body of the painter himself, it looks like a steady tower. There is only the spirit of art holding him together forever. Rembrandt usually does not note the year of his self portraits. If all his self portraits are put into order, we can see that the self portraits before his 34 are full of faith, tenaciousness and fortitude. In this picture, the painter only uses a brief and broad way to sculpture his inside feeling. The serious expression on his face just reflects his suffering of the growing life pressure.
