REMBRANDT VAN RIJN
(1606-1669)

Rembrandt van Rijn was born in Leiden, Netherlands on July 15, 1606. His parents took great pride to make sure he had a good education, even though they lived very modestly. He was born next to the last of the nine or more children of a miller (Harmen Gerritsz van Rijn) and a baker’s daughter (Cornelia Neeltgen Willemsdr. Van Zuytbroeck). At the age of 13 he attended the University of Leiden. However, he soon left there to pursue a career as an artist.

In 1624 Rembrandt went to Amsterdam to work with Pieter Lastman, a painter of biblical, mythological and historical scenes. By 1625 he was working independently in Leiden and he was closely associated with Jan Lievens, also a student of Lastman’s. The two young men worked so similarly that even in their own lifetime there was doubt as to which of them was responsible for a particular painting. They used the same models and even worked on each others paintings.

By 1631 Rembrandt was ready to compete with the accomplished portrait painters of Amsterdam. Around the same time he moved to Amsterdam, where he had already achieved some recognition as a portraitist. Both his career and his personal life began to prosper. He married a well-to-do young woman, Saskia van Uijlenburgh. They had three children who all died in infancy, but Saskia gave birth to a forth child (Titus) in September of 1641 but unfortunately, in June of 1642 Saskia died.

In 1649 after a brief affair with his son’s nanny Geertghe Dircx, Rembrandt found someone to share his life with. Hendrickje Stoffels formally his housekeeper, soon became his partner in love and was the subject of many of his paintings. She remained with him until her death in 1663. She left a daughter, Cornelia, who had been born to them in 1654.

Although he was successful in his career as an artist, teacher and art dealer he was living way beyond his means which finally drove him to declare bankruptcy in 1656. Much of his collection of art and antiquities including the sale of his house went to pay his huge debts.

A few years after the death of Hendrickje his only son Titus died as well. The lonely Rembrandt continued to paint. His last self-portrait is dated 1669. When he died in Amsterdam, on October 4, 1669 at the age of 63, a painting, (Simeon with the Christ Child in the Temple) was left unfinished on his easel.