The life work of Rembrandt — all 317 known paintings, 285 etchings and more than 100 drawings — go on display next week in full-sized digital reproductions that attempt to recreate the works as they emerged from the artist's studio rather than as they exist today.In some ways, the high resolution images are more authentic than the real paintings, said Ernst van de Wetering, a leading Rembrandt scholar who supervised the project.Employing computer wizardry, pieces of canvas or panel that were sliced off centuries ago have been patched back on. Colors are restored to the vibrancy they had when they came off the master's brush. Details hidden in darkness because of aging pigments emerge into view."The Complete Rembrandt, Life Size" exhibition opens Sunday in the former Amsterdam Stock Exchange building and runs through Sept. 7.Not everyone is happy with the idea of passing off posters as true art. But even Van de Wetering, who has examined much of 17th century artist's work with x-rays and microscopes, said he discovered details he had never seen before."I got surprises," he said, as he watched the folds of painted cloth materialize on the computer screen and dark corners highlighted.Organized chronologically, the exhibition brings together work from more than 100 museums and collections around the world to offer viewers "a walk through Rembrandt's mind," said the art historian. It follows his 45-year evolution from young painter to possibly the most famous master of his day, and the sudden leaps of inspiration and conceptualization in between that jolt him to new levels.
The life work of Rembrandt — all 317 known paintings, 285 etchings and more than 100 drawings — go on display next week in full-sized digital reproductions that attempt to recreate the works as they emerged from the artist's studio rather than as they exist today.
In some ways, the high resolution images are more authentic than the real paintings, said Ernst van de Wetering, a leading Rembrandt scholar who supervised the project.
Employing computer wizardry, pieces of canvas or panel that were sliced off centuries ago have been patched back on. Colors are restored to the vibrancy they had when they came off the master's brush. Details hidden in darkness because of aging pigments emerge into view.
"The Complete Rembrandt, Life Size" exhibition opens Sunday in the former Amsterdam Stock Exchange building and runs through Sept. 7.
Not everyone is happy with the idea of passing off posters as true art. But even Van de Wetering, who has examined much of 17th century artist's work with x-rays and microscopes, said he discovered details he had never seen before.
"I got surprises," he said, as he watched the folds of painted cloth materialize on the computer screen and dark corners highlighted.
Organized chronologically, the exhibition brings together work from more than 100 museums and collections around the world to offer viewers "a walk through Rembrandt's mind," said the art historian. It follows his 45-year evolution from young painter to possibly the most famous master of his day, and the sudden leaps of inspiration and conceptualization in between that jolt him to new levels.