Rijksmuseum

Lachende jongeman

Date

c. 1629 - c. 1630

Medium

panel, oil paint (paint), oak (wood)

Institution

Rijksmuseum

A young man wearing a painter’s cap, probably Rembrandt, laughs cheerfully at us. The painting is not a portrait, but rather a portrayal of an emotion. Rembrandt frequently used his own face to practice rendering expressions: smiling, angry, sad, or startled. This panel was long considered an early self-portrait by the artist. Now it is thought to be by a pupil in Rembrandt’s Leiden workshop.

The authoritative record is held by Rijksmuseum. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.