Art Institute of Chicago

The Star of the Kings: A Night Piece

Rembrandt van Rijn

Date

c. 1651

Medium

Etching, drypoint, and engraving on ivory laid paper

Culture

Holland

Department

Prints and Drawings

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

Rembrandt likely knew Jan van de Velde the Younger’s dark yet straightforward rendition of the Twelfth Night festivities, in which the artist bathed his star-singers in sufficient lantern light so that their features could be made out. In contrast, Rembrandt submerged his revelers in pitch blackness, with only a glimmer of light emanating from their star. Carrying it was an important role (here assumed by a child), and at the end of each verse, pulling a rope set the star in motion. Rembrandt suggested a second group of singers in the far left, clustered around their own tiny, bright star.

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