From the small window in the tiny room at the top of the mill little light could be expected, and as he did much of his painting here his studies were mostly in shadow. Often he must have looked from this little window down upon the quaint city of Leiden, built upon its ninety islands joined by at least a hundred and fifty bridges; upon its wide streets, rose-bordered canals, houses built in rows, each with its own windmill, and the picturesque rows of trees. The largest building of all was the University, for which Leiden is still famous. Rembrandt attended this university, we are told, and as he looked at it he must have recalled its history and how bravely the Dutch people fought when the Spanish army tried to capture the city—how they braved famine and pestilence as they awaited the arrival of Prince William of Orange. As a reward for their courage, William offered his people either a great gift of gold or a university; and, although the people needed the money to rebuild their houses, they chose the university.
Rembrandt is one of the great artists who is known to the world by his first name. His father’s name was Gerrit Harmens and he was called Harmens van Rijn (by the Rhine). According to a custom of those days the name frequently told where the man lived. His son was called Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, meaning Rembrandt, son of Harmens by the Rhine.
Rembrandt’s great love for good pictures, and his desire to draw, caused his parents to send him to an artist to study. He studied with this teacher at home for three years. Then he spent several months in Amsterdam studying, but finally decided that nature should be his teacher. He was then only sixteen years old, but he fitted up the little room in the mill as a studio, and here he continued his study. He painted his father, his mother, and his brothers and sisters many times. Then he painted his own portrait by looking in a mirror, and, by assuming various attitudes and different expressions, he received much valuable practice which, later on, helped him greatly.
His first great work was a portrait of his mother, painted when he was twenty-three years old. Two years later he went to Amsterdam, where his pictures brought large prices and pupils flocked to him from all parts of Europe. Once he painted a window with a servant standing near it that was so real it deceived every one.
About this time he married the beautiful Saskia, whose picture he has painted so many times. His home was furnished extravagantly, and nothing was too good to give Saskia.
There are three great paintings by Rembrandt which mark three epochs in his life. The first was “The Anatomy Lesson,” painted for Doctor Tulp, representing the Professor of Anatomy lecturing to his class. It is said that Rembrandt hid behind a curtain and, without their knowledge, observed the class during several lessons that he might secure natural expressions and positions. This picture was painted shortly after his marriage to Saskia, and through it he became famous. It marks the beginning of the happiest part of his life.
The second great painting was the “Night Watch,” which was not appreciated because he failed to give all the figures equal prominence. This picture marks the beginning of his fall from favor, and it was about this time that his wife, Saskia, died.
Crushed by both sorrow and misfortune, Rembrandt still continued to paint. His choice of subjects, however, changed noticeably. He now painted more of the sorrow, poverty, and distress of life. His house, with all its beautiful furnishings, was sold.
Then came his great painting, “The Syndics of the Cloth Hall,” in which he seems to have concentrated all his wonderful genius. But, masterpiece that it is, the picture won no popularity, and so the last years of Rembrandt’s life were spent in increasing poverty and sadness.
Other noted pictures by Rembrandt are: “Christ Blessing Little Children,” “Sacrifice of Abraham,” “Portrait of an Old Woman,” “The Mill,” “Saskia,” and “Supper at Emmaus.”