Jacob Wrestling with the Angel
Rembrandt1659–1660
Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Berlin, Germany
Rembrandt wählte für sein Spätwerk eine selten dargestellte Begebenheit aus dem Alten Testament (Genesis 32,22-31), worin berichtet wird, dass Jakob - nachdem er seinen Schwiegervater Laban verlassen hatte - mit seinen beiden Frauen und seinen Söhnen in die Heimat zog. Auf dem Weg dorthin blieb er allein auf der Seite des Flusses Jabbok zurück, wo ihm ein Engel in Menschengestalt begegnete. Jakob rang mit dem Engel bis zur Morgenräte. Als dieser erkannte, dass Jakob nicht aufgeben würde, renkte er ihm die Hüfte aus. Jakob hielt seinen Widersacher jedoch weiter fest und zwang diesen, ihn zu segnen. Dies tat der Engel und Jakob erkannte in ihm Gott. Rembrandt verzichtete bei seiner großformatigen Darstellung auf Details und konzentrierte sich auf die beiden Hauptfiguren, die er lebensgroß in Nahsicht wiedergab. Das originale Format des Gemäldes war ursprünglich sehr viel größer. Im Laufe der Zeiten wurde das Bild mehrfach beschnitten. SIGNATUR / INSCHRIFT: rechts unten bezeichnet: „Rembrandt’f“ und „RH“ (?)
- Title: Jacob Wrestling with the Angel
- Creator: Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn
- Date Created: 1659–1660
- Physical Dimensions: 140,1 x 120,0
- Type: Picture
- External Link: Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
- Medium: Canvas
- Style: Netherlandish
- Inv. No.: 828
- ISIL-No.: DE-MUS-017018
- Copyright Image: Photo: © Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Gemäldegalerie / Image by Google
- Collection: Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
- Artist information: Rembrandt has gone down in history as one of the greatest painters, printmakers and etchers in the whole of European art and the most important Dutch artist to date. Even at an early age he gained a very high reputation as a portrait painter and in his most active period, during the Dutch Golden Age, he executed a spectacular array of works. In 1627 he began to accept students in his big workshop and became master of several artists, including Carel Fabritius and Ferdinand Bol. Some years later he moved on to Amsterdam, where he started his professional career as a portraitist. His focus would always remain on portraiture, but he also created landscapes and narrative paintings. His style was initially quite 'smooth' and fine, later though it became 'rough' due to his variegated paint surfaces which gave a highly tactile quality to his paintings. He is also considered a master of chiaroscuro due to the contrasts of light and dark which so characterize his works. The themes he took up in his paintings served many artists as inspiration, during his lifetime but also after death. The last years of his life were dominated by serious poverty due to high debts. In 1656 he was even declared bankrupt. Rembrandt is best known for such works as 'The Night Watch' (1642) or 'The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp' (1631).
- Artist Place of Death: Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Artist Place of Birth: Leiden, Netherlands
- Artist Gender: male
- Artist Dates: 1606-1669
- Acquired: 1821 Purchase with the collection of the merchant Edward Solly, Berlin
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