Angels-REMBRANDT

One of the greatest masters of European art, Rembrandt Harmenszoon
van Rijn (1606–69), whose paintings include several angelic scenes, was
of Dutch Reformed heritage. He was born in the university city of Leiden,
where he grew up in humble circumstances. In 1620 he enrolled at
the University of Leiden, which he eventually left to begin his training
as an artist. After a few years he went to Amsterdam, where he studied
with the history painter Pieter Lastman. He returned to Leiden six
months later to work as an independent artist, producing several paintings,
prints, and drawings, as well as a number of self-portraits.
About 1632 he moved to Amsterdam, where in 1633 he received
an important commission from Prince Frederick Henry of Orange for a
series of paintings depicting the Passion of Christ. In 1634 he married
Saskia van Uylenburgh, the daughter of a wealthy family, and in 1639
he purchased a large home, which is now the Rembrandthuis Museum.
His wife died in 1642, shortly after the birth of their son Titus.
During his later years Rembrandt had many financial difficulties,
including a declaration of insolvency. Further, he chose to live in isolation
from Dutch society, although he continued to receive important
commissions until his death.
Rembrandt’s angels can be described as poetical, unearthly apparitions.
Among the most remarkable angelic scenes by Rembrandt is
The Angel and The Prophet Balaam (Musйe Cognacq-Jay, Paris), one of
his earliest historical paintings. This painting is based on the story of
how Balak, king of the Moabites, asked the prophet Balaam to curse
the people of Israel and how God transformed this curse into a blessing.
It shows Balaam, who does not perceive that an angel of the Lord
stands in his way, striking his donkey, who will not move. In the biblical
account the beast reproaches him and the angel rebukes him, and
Balaam realizes that he must heed the voice of God and his messenger.
The various scenes from the story of Raphael and Tobias from the
Book of Tobit (a book of Scripture included in the Roman Catholic
canon of the Old Testament and in the Protestant Apocrypha) have
been represented in the works of artists of all nations. Rembrandt also
painted the parting of Tobias from his father and mother, as well as
several other incidents in the story. The Angel Departing From the Family
of Tobias, in the Louvre, is remarkable for its spirited action. (In the
scriptural account Tobit, Tobias’s father, sends his son to recover a sum
of money to provide for his wife after his death. During his journey,
the young Tobias, guided by an angel, catches a fish with whose liver
he later restores his father’s eyesight. Then he recovers the money and
takes a wife, with whom he returns home.) The painting represents the moment when the four characters of the
story realize that Tobias’s guide is the angel
Raphael, who, having fulfilled his mission,
ascends toward heaven.
Another beautiful angel is depicted in the
painting called Presentation in the Temple
(1627–28, Hamburg Gallery) that features the
prophetess Hannah and her son Samuel. The
brilliant gold-yellow sculptured angel’s head
above the pews creates color accents and separates
the group from the rest of the temple. The
painting Jacob Wrestling with the Angel
(1648–55, State Museums, Berlin-Dahlem) is
based on the story of Jacob, who, having sent
his family and possessions across the brook Jabbok,
spends the whole night wrestling with a
stranger who is later revealed to be an angel of
the Lord. In this painting Rembrandt depicts
the moment at which the angel, who shows no
trace of physical exertion, dislocates Jacob’s hip.
In his portrayal of the story of Abraham
preparing to sacrifice his son Isaac, Rembrandt
focuses on the moment the angel prevents consummation
of the sacrifice. This powerful and
realistic picture is in the Hermitage at St. Petersburg. Rembrandt’s
illustration of Jacob’s dream in the Dulwich Gallery, Holland, shows a
stream of dazzling light that forms a ladder, up and down which float
mystic, radiant angels. One of the most famous of Rembrandt’s early
etchings, The Angel Appearing to the Shepherds, is considered a good
example of his use of a natural occurrence to illustrate a supernatural
event. Here he added a native Dutch element by transforming the
shepherds into cowherds, who evince their own primal fear before the
glowing angelic apparition.