Displaying items by tag: ernst van de wetering

Are there suddenly dozens more genuine Rembrandts in the world?

There are if art authorities accept the findings of Ernst van de Wetering, the Dutch art historian and longtime head of the Netherlands-based Rembrandt Research Project. In its sixth and final volume, published Wednesday, Mr. van de Wetering reattributes 70 paintings—often discounted by previous scholars as well as the institutions that own them—to the Dutch master. They include four at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. Of those, Mr. van de Wetering is quick to emphasize “Portrait of a Man,” also known as “The Auctioneer,” dated 1658 by the researcher.

After 15 years in storage, a Dutch painting long slighted in the academic literature dramatically returned to public display on Monday at this city's Joslyn Art Museum as an authenticated work of Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669). The "Portrait of Dirck van Os" (c.1658) was recently confirmed as a work of the master by the world's foremost authority on Rembrandt, Amsterdam University professor Ernst van de Wetering, following conservation efforts to remove extensive repainting and layers of discolored varnish that previously obscured the picture's original paint surface. The culmination of a decades-long campaign by the Joslyn's staff to interest outside specialists in the painting's attribution, the unveiling marks a proud moment for one of America's outstanding regional museums. "People here sensed the underlying quality," says the Joslyn's executive director, Jack Becker, "but you need the scholarly community to rehabilitate a picture like this."

The Joslyn Art Museum in Omaha, Nebraska, announced that a painting that had been relegated to storage for a decade has been authenticated as a work by Rembrandt. The canvas, which has been in the museum’s collection for 72 years, was previously attributed to “The Circle of Rembrandt.” A recent reassessment by Rembrandt expert Ernst van de Wetering proved that the painting was made by the Dutch master himself.

“Portrait of Dirck van Os” was purchased by the Joslyn Art Museum in 1942 from a private collection as an authentic Rembrandt. A later assessment saw the painting reclassified as a work by one of Rembrandt’s students. After a visit to the Joslyn Art Museum in 2010, Van de Wetering had the work sent to Amsterdam for restoration. After later additions of paint were removed, a very different portrait was revealed, leading the scholar to deem the work a late painting by Rembrandt.

There are approximately 300 Rembrandts known to exist. “Portrait of Dirck van Os” will go on view at the Joslyn Art Museum in May.