The Night Watch by Rembrandt van Rijn was created in 1642. The painting is in Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. The size of the work is 379,5 x 453,5 cm and is made of oil on canvas.
Rembrandt’s largest and most famous painting was made for one of the three headquarters of Amsterdam’s civic guard. These groups of civilian soldiers defended the city from attack. Rembrandt was the first to paint all of the figures in a civic guard piece in action. The captain, dressed in black, gives the order to march out. The guardsmen are getting into formation. Rembrandt used the light to focus on particular details, like the captain’s gesturing hand and the young girl in the foreground. She was the company mascot. The nickname Night Watch originated much later, when the painting was thought to represent a nocturnal scene. (Read more in Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam).
About the Artist: Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman Rembrandt was born on 15 July 1606 in Leiden, in the Dutch Republic, now the Netherlands. As a boy, he attended a Latin school. At the age of 13, he was enrolled at the University of Leiden, although according to a contemporary he had a greater inclination towards painting. In 1624 or 1625, Rembrandt opened a studio in Leiden, which he shared with friend and colleague Jan Lievens. In 1627, Rembrandt began to accept students, which included Gerrit Dou in 1628 and Isaac de Jouderville… Read more
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