Amsterdam’s Rijskmuseum is set to cap its Year of Rembrandt with an exhibition contrasting 17th century Dutch and Spanish masters.
The exhibition opens on Friday with around 60 outstanding works,including 10 by Diego Velazquez (1599-1660) and 11 by Rembrandt vanRijn (1606-1669). It is the first time ever the work of the two is being featured together.
Among other artists featured are Frans Hals, Bartolome Murillo, Johannes Vermeer and Francisco de Zurbaran.
Rembrandt and Velazquez are the main representatives of the flourishing of art in their respective countries during the 17th century, German curator and conservator Gregor Weber said on Tuesday in Amsterdam.
“We have placed two heroes side-by-side, and their artwork in a visual dialogue,” Weber said.
The exhibition was organised in cooperation with Madrid’s Prado museum.
It was decided to display Dutch and Spanish paintings in pairs.
The pairs show stunning similarities, though Velazquez and Rembrandt never met, Weber said.
The exhibition “Rembrandt-Velazquez. Dutch and Spanish Masters” is due to be formally opened on Thursday evening by Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Spanish King Felipe VI.. It is scheduled to run until January 19.
The Netherlands has organised numerous exhibitions and events throughout 2019 to mark the 350th anniversary of Rembrandt’s death. — dpa
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