Abstract

Rembrandt's Syndics of the Drapers' Guild of 1662 is widely recognized as the crowning achievement of his career. Yet scholars cannot agree on what the five "sample-masters" positioned around a table are doing, or who they are looking at, if anyone. I propose that Rembrandt portrayed the sample-masters looking up from his studies of them in their account book and out at him. His brilliant solution for a specific artistic problem was based on the concrete circumstances of his process of composition and selfconsciously reflects on portraiture as a process in space and time. Rembrandt reveals himself as "hidden master" or invisible viewer, engaging his sitters in a dialectical relation, which we vicariously experience in turn.

Talk to us

Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have

Schedule a call

Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.