This is one of dozens of self portraits by Rembrandt. We see the artist in confident pose – self-assured, dressed in expensive-looking fur and velvet, his hat laced with jewels. But, though he is a Dutchman living in the 1640s, Rembrandt is wearing the clothes of a gentleman of the 1520s and his pose is based on paintings by Dürer, Titian and Raphael from a similar date. So, as the subject of the painting, Rembrandt is portraying himself as a Renaissance gentleman, and as the artist he is both paying homage to and directly comparing himself with the most famous artists of that time.
The implications of this double echo would certainly have been understood by Rembrandt’s sophisticated clientele. By taking the pose and clothes of a gentleman he was claiming a much higher social status than was usually afforded to artists at the time. And by citing the works of three of the greatest Renaissance painters, he is implying that he is their equal.
Sale of pictures belonging to Monsieur Perin, Paris, 4–5 March 1816, lot 37 (unsold); in the collection of General Dupont, Paris; exhibited at the Exposition de la Société des Amis de l’Enfance, Paris, 1861, lent by General Dupont’s heirs, Comte de Richemont, Vicomte de Richemont and Baron de Richemont, from whom purchased in September 1861.
Text extracted from the ‘Provenance’ section of the catalogue entry in Neil MacLaren, revised and expanded by Christopher Brown, ‘National Gallery Catalogues: The Dutch School: 1600–1900’, London 1991 and supplemented by Bart Cornelis; for further information see the full catalogue entry
C. Baker and T. Henry, The National Gallery: Complete Illustrated Catalogue, London 2001
This is a French Louis XIV frame, crafted from oak. It probably dates to the beginning of the French Regency period, as suggested by the corner palmettes, centred shell motifs and the ‘décor mosaique en croisillons’ – a latticework taking the form of square mosaic shapes in a grid-like pattern, encased with crossing stripes or bars.
On the back edge of the frame is a cabochon (egg-and-nest) motif. Between the corner and the centre decorations, fleur-de-lis, scrolling leaves, flowers and tendrils adorn the frame, followed by a sanded flat. The sight moulding is adorned with ornamentation, including C-scrolls and centred flowers, influenced by the designer Jean Berain.
The frame has been restored and heavily overgilded, which has clogged the detailed carved recutting lines for which French craftsmen are renowned. The frame has been slightly enlarged in the corners, probably to cover gaps that appeared due to the shrinkage of the wood. To accommodate the shaped corners on Rembrandt’s Self Portrait at the Age of 34, the frame required an arched opening, which was created by spandrels, textured with sand and gilded.
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