Supporting the flowing art market and the popularity of his portraits, Rembrandt van Rijn sold his (what is being called) Aristotle with a Bust of Homer. It is known that the piece was originally purchased in by the prince of Sicily, Don Antonio Ruffo, but whether it was also commissioned by him is unknown. Regardless, the illustrations in the imitative portrait appear to be of Rembrandt’s whole decision. Shown is a deeply pensive, abstracted Aristotle with his hand on a bust of the late-poet Homer along with his other hand tugging at the gold chain wrapped around his chest. Staged in a dark setting, what can be seen is Rembrandt’s representation of the Aristotelian method of acquiring knowledge: through experience; by sight. While at the same
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Typically, what is highlighted is significant, worthy of attention. The backgrounds in his portraits serve as dramatic contrasts lacking detail or even clarity at all. Rembrandt continues this process in his painting Aristotle with a Bust of Homer (Figure 1). Source of light is slightly indistinguishable in the dim setting, but it seems to be coming from the upper left corner of the paining, gleaming downward at an angle onto Aristotle’s body and glimpsing the head of the bust. The hands are also illuminated in a similar way: the hand placed on the bust is covered with light while the other hand hides in the shadows fiddling with the golden chain. The right hand is place on Homer’s head and highlighted while his left hand is almost hiding, ashamed of establishing such an importance in money rather than knowledge. This feeds into the thematic conflict between material and spiritual lifestyles. The light source is ambiguous yet its trajectory is specific. The light highlights the philosopher and his antiquity. The light is brought upon the bust and central figure to obviously emphasize importance of the two, but it also invites the viewer to consider, as Aristotle does in the painting, the fundamentals and hallmarks of prior …show more content…
Rather, it looks like the 17th century fashion of Rembrandt’s generation. Starting with the unique hat (Figure 2) Rembrandt predictably incorporated puts his touch on the work. It is also apparent that focused a lot of attention and devoted a substantial amount of paint to these areas of the painting. The next area of detail exists around the illuminated cloak (Figure 3) draped on the central figure. This light off-white cloak containing instances of gold also reinforces Aristotle’s significance, but it also brings his body forward, which without the presence of the cloak would look very much like the floating heads in The Osteology Lesson of Dr. Sebastiaen Egbertsz. Quick, rigorous brushstrokes and deliberate shading create volume and folds in the sleeves to give more texture and depth. These decisions help carry our attention all across Aristotle’s body. The luminescent sections also allow the background, in contrast, to dissolve into an obscure and ambiguous darkness, accentuating the events of the tableau. Finally, the most important article of clothing is the golden chain (Figure 4) that connects to his medallion representing a man, possibly Alexander the Great. The globs and chunks of paint on his sash give the accessory an almost three-dimensional effect. The rings on the chain look as if they are almost fully exposed and separated from the painting. Fiddling with
Typically, what is highlighted is significant, worthy of attention. The backgrounds in his portraits serve as dramatic contrasts lacking detail or even clarity at all. Rembrandt continues this process in his painting Aristotle with a Bust of Homer (Figure 1). Source of light is slightly indistinguishable in the dim setting, but it seems to be coming from the upper left corner of the paining, gleaming downward at an angle onto Aristotle’s body and glimpsing the head of the bust. The hands are also illuminated in a similar way: the hand placed on the bust is covered with light while the other hand hides in the shadows fiddling with the golden chain. The right hand is place on Homer’s head and highlighted while his left hand is almost hiding, ashamed of establishing such an importance in money rather than knowledge. This feeds into the thematic conflict between material and spiritual lifestyles. The light source is ambiguous yet its trajectory is specific. The light highlights the philosopher and his antiquity. The light is brought upon the bust and central figure to obviously emphasize importance of the two, but it also invites the viewer to consider, as Aristotle does in the painting, the fundamentals and hallmarks of prior …show more content…
Rather, it looks like the 17th century fashion of Rembrandt’s generation. Starting with the unique hat (Figure 2) Rembrandt predictably incorporated puts his touch on the work. It is also apparent that focused a lot of attention and devoted a substantial amount of paint to these areas of the painting. The next area of detail exists around the illuminated cloak (Figure 3) draped on the central figure. This light off-white cloak containing instances of gold also reinforces Aristotle’s significance, but it also brings his body forward, which without the presence of the cloak would look very much like the floating heads in The Osteology Lesson of Dr. Sebastiaen Egbertsz. Quick, rigorous brushstrokes and deliberate shading create volume and folds in the sleeves to give more texture and depth. These decisions help carry our attention all across Aristotle’s body. The luminescent sections also allow the background, in contrast, to dissolve into an obscure and ambiguous darkness, accentuating the events of the tableau. Finally, the most important article of clothing is the golden chain (Figure 4) that connects to his medallion representing a man, possibly Alexander the Great. The globs and chunks of paint on his sash give the accessory an almost three-dimensional effect. The rings on the chain look as if they are almost fully exposed and separated from the painting. Fiddling with