1 



Mirror reversal of Landscape with a hav barn and a flock of sheep. 



In Rembrandt's case, it is clearly the result of careful 

 preparation, many years of learning and experience, 

 and hard work in the creation of each picture. Such 

 a process has produced in this print — one of nine 

 landscapes which mark a turning point in 1650 — a 

 work of stylistic synthesis, which integrates Rem- 

 brandt's previous knowledge and leads or to his later 

 masterpieces. 



In 1650 Rembrandt was evidently in a tranquil 

 state of mind. He was 44 years old. Young Hen- 

 drickje Stoffels, who had entered his household in 

 1645 as a maid, was well settled as housekeeper and 

 mistress. Geertghe Dircx — who had been the nurse 

 of Rembrandt's son, Titus, since the death of his 

 wife, Saskia, in 1642 — had just been taken to an 

 institution after a nasty breach of promise suit.^ 

 Rembrandt's finances were in good shape; his insol- 

 vency was not to come until 1656, after the inter- 

 national economic crisis of 1653.'' The artist cer- 

 tainly had the fullest confidence and experience in 

 his working methods, having alreads' done close to 

 250 prints." This state of well-being is reflected in 

 the fact that of the 27 prints Rembrandt did in the 

 three years, 1650-1652, no fewer than 14 are land- 

 scapes of a serene character.^ This is an unusually 

 large proportion of a single subject and surely reflects 

 the artist's state of mind, which helped him to produce 



this masterpiece of serenity, humor, and technical 

 virtuosity. 



His etching technique can be clearly studied in 

 this print. In summary, all the evidence shows that 

 Rembrandt here laid a foundation of lines on his 

 plate with a single etching. He then mantled the 

 sketch with rich drypoint lines, to give a sensitive 

 chiaroscuro to the finished work. The integration of 

 etching and drypoint is striking. There are few areas 

 of this print (except the sky) that do not contain both 

 kinds of line. 



Rembrandt evidently had an excellent idea of his 

 design before he ever touched the needle to the plate. 

 Though he is often admired for his spontaneity, 

 particularly in his landscapes,^ this is a misconception. 

 Benesch lists no fewer than 78 landscape drawings by 

 Rembrandt in the years 1648-1650,'° and there were 

 perhaps manv more, now lost or unidentified. For 

 this etching alone, there are at least five likely pre- 

 paratory drawings, each giving certain essential fea- 

 tures of the final print. The most interesting is the 

 Landscape with a Rolling Horse}^ Here we see that the 

 horse, apparently the happiest of impulsive inspira- 

 tions, is instead a carefully considered part of the 

 final design, copied from the drawing previously done 

 on the spot. As the horse in the drawing is the 

 mirror image of that in the print, we can feel certain 



96 



BULLETIN 250 : CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE MUSEUM OF HISTORY AND TECHNOLOGY 



