Rembrandt's Amsterdam

Audioguide
Learn more about Rembrandt’s Amsterdam and experience the Dutch city’s rapid development in the seventeenth century: its booming economy, international trade and enormous population increase. Yet the paintings in the exhibition also shed light on the flipside of that tremendous prosperity, which for many Amsterdamers meant hard work and exploitation. Get to know Amsterdam’s many facets with audio tracks on some 30 artworks.

About the exhibition
Amsterdam—one city with many faces. In the 17th century, Amsterdam was the metropolis in Europe. The economy and trade were booming, the population rapidly increased, and the arts and sciences flourished. An influential civic society shaped the city’s fortunes and glorified itself in splendid group portraits made by the greatest Dutch painters of the age, foremost among them Rembrandt, alongside Jacob Backer, Ferdinand Bol, Govert Flinck, Bartholomeus van der Helst, Nicolaes Eliasz. Pickenoy, and Jan Victors. The exhibition challenges the traditional view of the 17th century as the Netherlands’ ‘Golden Age’. The economic and cultural prosperity of the Rembrandt era was bolstered by the aggressive trade policies of the United Netherlands, which relied on the establishment of colonies in Asia and South America as well as the enslavement and exploitation of people. As wars, poverty and religious and political persecution swept across Europe, migration to the Dutch Republic – particularly Amsterdam – steadily increased. A robust labour market and an unparalleled degree of religious tolerance attracted many in search for a better and freer life, a goal that some, but by no means all, achieved. It was primarily Amsterdam’s urban elite that commissioned lavish portraits of themselves: members of the civic guards and the craft and trade guilds, as well as the governors of the social institutions supported by civic society. While showcasing these prestigious paintings, the exhibition at the Städel Museum also illuminates the experiences of other social groups. Visitors will encounter images and narratives reflecting a pluralistic Amsterdam society, which tell of wealth and poverty, joy and hardship, power and powerlessness.

Rembrandt’s Amsterdam. Golden Times?
27 November 2024 to 23 March 2025
Städel Museum Frankfurt

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