Describe the unique characteristics of Protestant devotionalism as reflected in the art of Rembrandt

What will be an ideal response?


Rembrandt's Anabaptist upbringing, characterized by a fundamentalist approach to Scripture and a solemn attention to the role of individual conscience, contributed to his unique style. In his religious works, he often chose subjects that were uncommon in Catholic art, focusing on the human, and even intimately personal, aspects of Old and New Testament stories. His sympathetic and largely unidealized treatment of sacred subject matter captured the spirit of Protestant devotionalism. He would often use people he saw walking the streets of Amsterdam in his religious paintings, bringing the biblical story into his own time and place. Rembrandt learned much about theatrical staging from the Italian baroque master Caravaggio; he used contrasts of light and dark areas for dramatic effect and rich areas of bright impastocontrast with dark, brooding passages, created by way of thinly brushed layers of oil paint.

Art & Culture

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