Master of Alkmaar, 1504, painting, SK-A-2815
A town in Holland is the setting for a narrative strip showing how a good Christian should help the needy. In almost all the scenes, Christ appears among the onlookers. The scenes give a sense of town life around 1500. This is one of the many art works severely damaged when Protestants cleansed…
On display in room 0.4
Vincent van Gogh, 1887, painting, SK-A-3262
After he heard his brother Theo describe the new colourful style of French art, Vincent decided in 1886 to move to Paris. He soon began experimenting with the new idiom in a series of self portraits. This was mainly to spare the expense of using models. Here he painted himself as a debonnaire…
On display in room 1.18
Gabriël Metsu, c. 1664 - c. 1666, painting, SK-A-3059
A worried mother looks at her young daughter, slumped listlessly on her lap. Metsu chose an unusual subject, since depictions of poorly children are rare in 17th-century art. Perhaps he intended the mother to personify charity, Caritas. Then the picture of the Crucifixion on the wall would be a…
Cornelis Troost, 1736, painting, SK-A-3948
The portrait conveys a sense of convivial hospitality, as if the man were inviting us into his home to enjoy his art and music. In a typically 18th-century way, the portrait has no sense of distance, of authority. It introduces us directly to the open personality of this enthusiastic young member of…
On display in room 1.1
Rembrandt van Rijn, 1642, painting, SK-C-5
Rembrandt’s largest, most famous canvas was made for the Arquebusiers guild hall. This was one of several halls of Amsterdam’s civic guard, the city’s militia and police. Rembrandt was the first to paint figures in a group portrait actually doing something. The captain, dressed in black, is…
On display in Nightwatch gallery
George Hendrik Breitner, 1898, painting, SK-A-3580
Breitner often took photos when preparing a painting. Several preparatory photos for this painting are also known. The way the woman is walking directly towards us and the way the picture is cropped gives it a photographic feel. Originally, Breitner’s subject was a maid, but following the negative…
On display in room 1.18
Rembrandt van Rijn, 1639, painting, SK-C-597
Maria Trip, daughter of one of Amsterdam’s wealthiest merchants, was twenty when Rembrandt painted her portrait. The artist placed Maria against a stone arch and devoted particular attention to the reflected light, the fashionable dress and jewellery. The costly garments are trimmed with strips of…
On display in room 2.8
Jan Asselijn, c. 1650, painting, SK-A-4
With its wings stretched and its neck poised, the swan protects her eggs against a dog swimming nearby. Showing the scene from a low angle emphasises the bird’s power. The inscriptions are a later addition and have a political message. They refer to the Dutch political leader Johan de Witt, who…
On display in Gallery of Honour
George Hendrik Breitner, 1894, painting, SK-A-3584
Inspired by Japanese prints, Breitner painted at least twelve versions of this girl in a white kimono around 1894. Each time, her pose is different and the kimono is a different colour. Here the embroidered white silk kimono with red trimmed sleeves and orange belt are what draw our attention. The…
On display in room 1.18
Pieter Jansz Saenredam, 1649, painting, SK-C-217
Once a Catholic church, St Odulphus’s passed into Protestant hands at the start of the Dutch Revolt against Spain. The artist shows a service taking place. Worshippers are listening to the preacher on the right in the pulpit. Sermons are the main feature of a Protestant service. Saenredam came…
On display in room 2.14
