Analysis of the painting "The Return of the Prodigal Son" by Rembrandt. Rembrandt van Rijn

Rembrandt created his masterpiece in the years 1668-1669, and the picture is based on a classic biblical story. However, the religious theme for the artists of that time is quite typical, and the appeal to the Gospel is traditional.

Composition

In the foreground of the picture are characters from the Gospel story dedicated to the Prodigal Son. It should be noted that the picture reflects not just a storyline, but also many personal experiences of the author himself. The artist was already in adulthood, and at that time he was tormented by many doubts about the impossibility of changing anything in the past, as well as about irretrievably lost years.

Some experts believe that the canvas depicts the embodiment of the main earthly passions, as well as the divine fundamental principle. There is also an opinion that in fact the characters in the picture are hypostases of the artist himself, who is at different stages of spiritual growth and rebirth.

The emotions of the characters in the picture are remarkable. Despite the sins of the youngest son, his old father accepts the prodigal son, and the old man's face shows absolute forgiveness. Moreover, we can safely say that the old man takes pity on his son, forgiving all his mistakes and mistakes.

Technique, execution, techniques

There are red and yellow tones on the canvas, and the background is quite dark. The kneeling pose of the son in front of the old man-father expresses the character's remorse, and as an additional symbol of forgiveness and remorse, we can call the fact that his figure is drawn mainly in lighter shades of colors.

The artist devoted a lot of time and attention to the smallest details that emphasize the wealth and success of all family members who are present in the painting. At the same time, bare feet and a beggar outfit of a young man on his knees symbolize the breakdown in him, and the fact that he stepped on the path of mistakes and came to an undesirable outcome for himself.

The strokes are impulsive, carelessly laid down and there are no traces of trying to lick the surface of the painting to hide this carelessness of paint strokes. Transitions from shadow to light emphasize emotionality.

The painting was painted just a few months before the death of the author, and this could not but affect the history of the masterpiece. This is the last thought that the artist managed to express in his work. By the way, in the same years, two other famous paintings by famous artists were painted, and both were also devoted to the theme of the return of the prodigal son: the works of artists Murillo and Jan Steen.

Before Great Lent, the Church remembers the parable of Christ about the prodigal son.

One man had two sons. The youngest of them said to his father: “Father! give me the portion of the estate that I follow. " The father complied with his request. After a few days, the younger son, having collected everything, went to a distant country and there, living dissolutely, squandered all his property.

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Gerrit van Honthorst. Prodigal son. 1622

When he had lived everything, there came a great famine in that country, and he began to need.

Expulsion of the prodigal son. Bartolomeo Murillo. 1660

And he went and joined (ie, joined) one of the inhabitants of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed pigs.

From hunger, he would be glad to eat the horns that the pigs ate; but no one gave it to him.

Then, coming to his senses, he remembered his father, repented of his deed and thought: “How many mercenaries (workers) from my father eat bread in abundance, and I am dying of hunger! I will get up, go to my father, and say to him: “Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you, and am no longer worthy to be called your son; accept me among your mercenaries. "

And so he did. He got up and went home to his father. And when he was still far away, his father saw him and took pity on him. The father himself ran towards his son, fell on his neck, kissed him. The son began to say: “Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you, and am no longer worthy to be called your son "...

Return of the prodigal son. Bartolomeo Murillo 1667-1670

Prodigal son. James Tissot

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Return of the prodigal son

But he answered his father: “Behold, I have served you for so many years and have never violated (did not violate) your command; but you never gave me a kid to have fun with my friends. And when this son of yours came, who has dissipated his property, you killed the fatted calf for him. "

The father said to him: “My son! you are always with me, and all mine is yours. And about that you ought to have rejoiced and rejoiced, that your brother was dead and came to life; disappeared and was found. "

In this parable, the father is God, and the prodigal son is the repentant sinner. Every person is like the prodigal son, who with his soul moves away from God and indulges in a willful, sinful life; with his sins, he destroys his soul and all the gifts (life, health, strength, abilities) that he received from God. When a sinner, having reasoned, brings God sincere repentance, with humility and with hope for His mercy, then the Lord, as a merciful Father, rejoices with His angels at the conversion of the sinner, forgives him all his iniquities (sins), no matter how great they are, and returns His favors and gifts to him.

With the story of the eldest son, the Savior teaches that every believing Christian should wholeheartedly wish everyone salvation, rejoice at the conversion of sinners, not envy God's love for them and not consider themselves worthy of God's mercies more than those who turn to God from their former lawless life.

Text: Archpriest Seraphim Slobodskoy

Images: Open Source

The feeling of boundless joy and love captured the father entirely, in fact, he does not even hug his son, since he no longer has the strength and his hand for this ...

The feeling of boundless joy and love captured the father entirely, in fact, he does not even hug his son, since he no longer has the strength for this and his hands are not capable of hugging his son. He simply feels it, thereby forgiving and protecting. Art critic M. Alpatov considers the main character of the painting to be the father, and the prodigal son is just an excuse for the father to show his generosity. He even thinks that the painting could be called "The Father Forgiving the Prodigal Son."

Self-portrait by Rembrandt Harmes van Rijn (c. 1665)

From the book by Nadezhda Ionina "100 Great Pictures"

While working on the painting "The Night Watch", Rembrandt's beloved wife Saskia died. The relatives of the deceased began to pursue the artist with lawsuits over the inheritance, trying to snatch part of the dowry bequeathed to Rembrandt by Saskia. But not only relatives persecuted Rembrandt. He was always besieged by creditors who pounced on the great artist like a greedy pack. Anyway, Rembrandt was never surrounded by honors, was never in the center of general attention, did not sit in the forefront, not a single poet during Rembrandt's lifetime praised him. At official celebrations, on the days of big celebrations, he was forgotten. And he disliked and avoided those who neglected him. The usual and beloved company were shopkeepers, burghers, peasants, artisans - the most common people. He liked to visit port taverns, where sailors, junk dealers, wandering actors, petty thieves and their girlfriends had fun. He enjoyed sitting there for hours, observing the bustle and sometimes sketching interesting faces, which he then transferred to his canvases.

Now in the Amsterdam house, in which the great Rembrandt lived for more than 20 years, the Museum is located. And once this house was sold for debts. Rembrandt himself then sat at the court session with such an indifferent air, as if this case did not concern him at all. He did not hear the speech of the judge and the shouts of creditors. His thoughts were so far from the meeting that he either could not answer one or another question of the judge, or his answers had no connection with the court case.

It was the turn of van der Piet, the artist's lawyer, to speak. Slowly and expressively he outlined the state of affairs. Sensibly, prudently and diligently defending Rembrandt's behavior, he appealed to the human feelings of creditors and to the judge's sense of justice. He threw down convincing, caustic and passionate words: “Let those who, in the name of insignificant sums of money that do not threaten them with the slightest loss or misfortune, want to make Rembrandt a beggar, burn with shame! I, van der Peet, speak here not only as a lawyer for the debtor, I speak on behalf of all mankind, which wants to deflect the undeserved blows of fate from one of his great sons ... equal to Shakespeare! Think everyone who is here - we will be covered with burial mounds, we will disappear from the memory of our descendants, and the name of Rembrandt will thunder over the world for centuries, and his shining works will be the pride of the whole earth! "...

Yes, Rembrandt's paintings, undoubtedly, are the pinnacle of Dutch painting, and in the work of the artist himself one of such peaks was the painting “The Return of the Prodigal Son”. He painted it in the last year of his life, when he was already old, poor, terminally ill and frail, lived in hunger and cold. And yet, in defiance of fate, he wrote, wrote and wrote in the country and city, which he glorified forever.

The Return of the Prodigal Son Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn 1669

The theme for the painting was the famous Gospel parable, which tells how, after long wanderings around the world, the prodigal son returned with unfulfilled hopes to his abandoned father. This story attracted many artists long before Rembrandt. The Renaissance masters saw the reconciliation of a father with a naughty son as a beautiful and entertaining sight. Thus, in a painting by the Venetian artist Bonifacio, the action takes place in front of a rich manor, in front of a crowded, discharged crowd. Dutch artists were attracted more by the ordeal that the rebellious son was subjected to in a foreign land (for example, the scene when a libertine rogue in a barnyard among pigs was ready to atone for his sins with a pious prayer).

For Rembrandt, the theme of the "prodigal son" was accompanied for many years of his life. He turned to this plot as early as 1636, when he was working on an etching of the same name. In his paintings on biblical and evangelical subjects, the artist rarely depicted scenes of passions or miracles; he was more attracted by stories about the everyday life of people, especially scenes from patriarchal family life. For the first time, the story of the prodigal son was presented by Rembrandt in an engraving in which he transferred the biblical plot to a Dutch setting and depicted his son as a bony, half-naked creature. A drawing in which the father energetically squeezes the shaggy head of his penitent son with his hand also dates back to this time: even in a moment of reconciliation, he wants to show his paternal authority.

Rembrandt returned to this topic many times, and over the years he presented it differently each time. In early versions, the son violently expresses his remorse and humility. In a series of later drawings, the emotional impulses of the father and son are not so exposed, the element of edification disappears. Subsequently, Rembrandt began to be interested in a kind of almost accidental meeting between an old man, a father and a son, in which the forces of human love and forgiveness were just about to be revealed. Sometimes it was a lonely old man sitting in a spacious room, before him his unlucky son knelt down. Sometimes it is an old man going out into the street, where an unexpected meeting awaits him; or his son comes up to him and squeezes him tightly in his arms.

After 30 years, the artist creates a less detailed, narrative composition in which the emphasis is shifted to the old man-father. The plot of the painting "The Return of the Prodigal Son" is not directly related to the previous sketches, but it was in it that Rembrandt put all his creative experience and perhaps the most important of life experience. Rembrandt thoughtfully read the biblical story, but he was not a simple illustrator who seeks to accurately reproduce the text. He was so engrossed in the parable, as if he himself had witnessed what had happened, and this gave him the right to finish the unsaid.

Several people gathered in a small area in front of the house. A ragged beggar, in rags belted with a rope, with the shaved head of a convict, the prodigal son is kneeling and hiding his face on the old man's chest. Seized by shame and remorse, he, perhaps for the first time in many years, felt the warmth of a human embrace. And the father, bowing to the "tramp", with gentle tenderness presses him to himself. His senile, unsteady hands lie tenderly on his son's back. This minute in its psychological state is equal to eternity, before both of them pass the years they spent without each other and brought so many mental anguish. It seems that the suffering has already broken them so that the joy of meeting did not bring relief.

The meeting between father and son takes place, as it were, at the junction of two spaces: in the distance you can guess the porch and behind it the cozy father's house. Before the picture, there is implied and invisibly present the boundless space of the paths traveled by the son, the world that is alien and turned out to be hostile to him. The figures of the father and son make up a closed group, under the influence of the feeling that gripped them, they seemed to merge into one. Towering over his kneeling son, the father touches him with soft movements of his hands. His face, hands, posture - everything speaks of peace and happiness, acquired after long years of painful waiting. The father's forehead seems to radiate light, and this is the brightest place in the picture. Nothing breaks the concentrated silence. Those present are watching the meeting of father and son with intense attention. Among them, a man in a red cloak standing on the right stands out, whose figure, as it were, connects the main characters with the people around them. The person standing behind is also closely watching what is happening. The gaze of his wide-open eyes suggests that he too was imbued with all the importance and seriousness of the moment. A woman standing at a distance is looking at the father and son with sincere sympathy. It is difficult to say who these people are. Perhaps Rembrandt did not strive for an individual characterization of those present, since they serve only as an addition to the main group.

Rembrandt long and persistently searched for the figure of the prodigal son, already in the prototypes of numerous drawings and sketches the prodigal son is guessed. In the picture, he is almost the only hero in classical painting who completely turned his back on the audience. The young man wandered a lot, experienced and experienced a lot: his head is covered with scabs, his shoes are worn out. One of them fell off his feet, and the viewer sees his calloused heel. He barely made it to his father’s doorway and knelt down exhausted. A rough shoe that fell off his feet speaks volumes about how long the path was covered, how humiliated he was. The viewer does not have the opportunity to see his face, but after the prodigal son, he, as it were, enters the picture and falls to his knees.

Rembrandt. Return of the prodigal son. 1668 g. State Hermitage, St. Petersburg.

“The Return of the Prodigal Son”. The old father found peace again. His youngest son is back. He does not hesitate to forgive him the wasted inheritance. No reproaches. Only mercy. Forgiving fatherly love.

And what about the son? He went to the extreme of despair. Beggar and ragged, he forgot pride. He fell to his knees. Feeling incredible relief. Because he was accepted.

“Prodigal Son” Rembrandt wrote a few months before his death. This is the culmination of his work. His main masterpiece. Before which every day a crowd gathers. What attracts people so much?

Special interpretation of the parable

Before us is a plot from a biblical parable. The father had two sons. The younger demanded part of his inheritance. Having received easy money, he went to see the world and enjoy life. Revels, card games, lots of booze. But the money quickly melted. There was nothing to live on.

Further - hunger, cold, humiliation. Hired a swineherd. To eat pig food. But this life turned out to be so hungry that the son understood. The only way out is to return to my father. And he will be asked to work for him. After all, they are satiated than he, his own son.

And here he is at his father's house. Dating his father. It was this moment of the parable that many artists chose for their paintings. But Rembrandt's work is completely different from the work of his contemporaries.

Take a look at the painting by Jan Steen.

Jan Steen. Return of the prodigal son. 1668-1670 Private collection. wikiart.org

Unlike Rembrandt, Jan Steen was very popular. Because it fully corresponded to the tastes of the customers of that time. Who wanted to see fun. Your good and well-fed life.

Hence the fruit basket on the woman's head. And the calf, which the delighted father ordered to slaughter on the occasion of the return of his son. And they even blow the horn. In order to announce the joyful event in the family to the neighbors.

Now compare this everyday scene with a painting by Rembrandt. Who did not add minor details. We don't even see our son's face. Rembrandt does everything to keep us focused on the main thing. On the feelings of the main characters.

In other countries, similar tastes prevailed. The artists added dramatic details. So, the Spanish artist Murillo even painted clothes on a tray. Which the father ordered to give to the returning son.

We also see the same poor calf. Which they want to cook in honor of a joyful event.

Murillo. Return of the prodigal son. 1667-1670 National Gallery of Washington, USA. nga.org

Can you imagine this calf at Rembrandt's?

Of course not. Rembrandt's painting is about something else. Not about the external attributes of generosity. And about the inner feelings of the father.

This is much more difficult to convey. But Rembrandt is so good at it that all external attributes seem ridiculous. This is his genius.

Rembrandt technique

Rembrandt is completely focused on conveying the inner world of his characters. This is reflected in his technique. We don't see a standard color scheme. We see a fusion of reds, browns and golden hues.

The smears of paint are applied impulsively, as if casually. The artist does not hide them. No slickness.

Chiaroscuro in the picture is also unusual. The main characters are illuminated by a dim light source. The brightest spot is the father's forehead. Twilight around. Which fades into almost total darkness in the background. Such transitions from light to shadow add emotion.

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Down with outer beauty

Rembrandt did not care about the external beauty of a person. His Prodigal Son is torn by life for real. Its appearance is unpleasant. A hole in the back. Washed legs. Naked skull.

Rembrandt. Return of the prodigal son. Fragment. 1669 State Hermitage

Now look at the Prodigal Son of Nikolai Losev.

Yes, his clothes are worn out. Even too much. This is more of a theatrical attribute. False, of course. After all, under this leaky rag there is a muscular, beautiful body. Well-cut too. The father in white robes looks like a fabulous prophet. Very beautiful. Even the dog is beautiful.

Nikolay Losev. Return of the prodigal son. 1882 National Art Museum of the Republic of Belarus. Wikipedia.org

Now compare this picture with the work of Rembrandt. And you will understand who came out more truthfully. More emotional.

Rembrandt's personal tragedy

Rembrandt created the "Prodigal Son" immediately after the tragedy that befell him. His son Titus died. He was barely 26 years old.

He was born of his first wife. Beloved Saskia. Who passed away when the boy was 10 months old. The child was very welcome. Before him, the couple lost three children in infancy.

Titus was a very loving son. He believed in his father's genius. And he did everything so that his father would continue to create.

Rembrandt. Titus as a monk. 1660 Rijksmuseum Museum, Amsterdam. Wikipedia.org

After the creditors took the house and its rich collection from Rembrandt, they had to move to the outskirts of the city.

Barely grown up, Titus organized an enterprise selling paintings. Father's paintings sold poorly. The son traded in paintings by other artists. So that my father can work calmly in his workshop.

Rembrandt painted his painting The Return of the Prodigal Son shortly before his death. Some connoisseurs of painting call this canvas the culmination of his work. But few people know that the well-known biblical story became a reflection of the real tragic events in the life of the master.

The biblical plot of the picture is known, perhaps, to everyone. The father had two sons. The elder helped his father with the housekeeping, and the younger demanded his part of the inheritance and went to indulge in all the vices of a riotous life. When the money ran out, the unlucky son was at the very bottom. He had to graze the pigs for a bowl of porridge, wander, beg for alms. As a result, he decided to return to his father's house and kneel before his parent. The father forgives his son.

It was this moment in the parable that the most famous painters chose for themselves. Rembrandt also depicted the scene of the prodigal son's arrival home. However, his work differs from the paintings of other painters.

If we compare the paintings of Rembrandt and other artists, then their striking contrast becomes visible. For example, Jan Steen, who was at one time much more popular than Rembrandt, has the same plot in the picture, but is made in a more optimistic manner. Servants blow the horn, lead the calf to be slaughtered, carry good clothes.

Almost the same is observed with the Spanish artist Murillo. A charming calf is again visible, clothes on a tray, a joyful dog.

Rembrandt lacks all unnecessary attributes, he focused only on the emotions of the father and son. It would be more correct to say that the emotions on the face of the prodigal son are not visible, but his appearance and posture can say a lot. Torn clothes, worn out shoes, calluses on the feet - all this so deeply conveys the emotionality of the scene. And also love, the all-forgiving love of a father ...

The master wrote "The Return of the Prodigal Son" almost immediately after the terrible tragedy that befell him. His only son Titus was gone. He was the fruit of the love of Rembrandt and his beloved wife Saskia. Titus is the only surviving child in the family, the other three died in infancy.

The father, distraught with grief, was persistently visited by thoughts of suicide. Only the work on the painting "The Return of the Prodigal Son" helped to avoid it. Rembrandt seemed to have projected himself into the place of his father in the biblical story, who had the good fortune to hug his child.

At the peak of his popularity, Rembrandt made good money, only