Perhaps no other painting by Rembrandt inspires such lofty feelings as this picture. In world art there are few works of such intense emotional impact as the monumental Hermitage painting "The Return of the Prodigal Son."

The story is taken from the New Testament.

The return of the prodigal son - this is a feeling of boundless joy of the family and fatherly protection. Perhaps, therefore, it is possible to call the main character the father, and not the prodigal son, who became the reason for the manifestation of generosity. Ethen sorrow for the lost youth, regret that it is impossible to return the lost days.

This story attracted many famous predecessors of Rembrandt: Durer, Bosch, Luke of Leiden, Rubens.

The Return of the Prodigal Son, 1669. Oil on canvas, 262x206.
State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg

One man had two sons. The younger son wanted to get his part of the estate, and the father divided the estate among his sons. Soon the youngest son gathered everything he had and went to a distant country. There he squandered all his wealth on a dissolute life. In the end, he was in dire need and was forced to work as a swineherd.

He was so hungry that he was ready to fill his stomach with slop that was given to pigs. But he was deprived of this too, because. famine began in the country. And then he thought: “How many servants are there in my father's house and there is enough food for all of them. And I'm dying of hunger here. I will go back to my father and say that I have sinned against heaven and against it.” And he returned home. When he was still far away, his father saw him, and he felt sorry for his son. He ran to meet him, hugged him and began to kiss.

He said: "Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son." But the father said to his servants: “Go quickly, bring him the best clothes and dress him. Put a ring on his hand and put on sandals. Bring a fattened calf and slaughter it. Let's make a feast and celebrate. After all, my son was dead, and now he is alive again! He was lost and now found!” And they began to celebrate.

The eldest son was in the field at that time. When he approached the house, he heard that there was music and dancing in the house. He called one of the servants and asked what was going on there. “Your brother came,” answered the servant, “and your father slaughtered a fattened calf, because his son is healthy and everything is fine with him.”

The eldest son was angry and did not even want to go into the house. Then the father came out and begged him. But the son said: “All these years I have worked for you like a slave, and I have always done everything you said. But you never slaughtered even a goat for me so that I could have fun with my friends.

But when this son of yours, who had squandered all your property in debauchery, returned home, you slaughtered a fattened calf for him!” "My son! - Then the father said, - you are always with me, and everything that I have is all yours. But we should rejoice that your brother was dead, and now he is alive again, was lost and found!”

The religious meaning of the parable is this: no matter how a person sins, repentance will always be rewarded with joyful forgiveness.

ABOUT THE PICTURE

This picture is undoubtedly crowning later work Rembrandt, about the repentant return of the son, about the disinterested forgiveness of the father, clearly and convincingly reveals the deep humanity of the story.

Rembrandt highlights the main thing in the picture with light, focusing our attention on it. The compositional center is located almost at the edge of the picture. The artist balances the composition with a figure standing on the right.

As always, the artist's imagination painted everything that was happening very concretely. There is not a single place in the vast canvas that is not filled with the subtlest changes in color. The action takes place at the entrance to the house to our right, covered with ivy and veiled in darkness.

The prodigal son, who collapsed on his knees before his decrepit father, having reached the last stage of poverty and humiliation in his wanderings, is an image that embodies the tragic path of knowing life with amazing power. The wanderer is wearing clothes that were once rich, but now turned into sackcloth. The left of his tattered sandals fell off his foot.

But it is not the eloquence of the narrative that determines the impression of this picture. In majestic, strict images, the depth and tension of feelings are revealed here, and Rembrandt achieves this in the complete absence of dynamics - in fact, action - in the whole picture.

FATHER AND SON

The picture is dominated by “only one figure - the father, depicted in front, with a wide, blessing gesture of his hands, which he almost symmetrically puts on the shoulders of his son.

The father is a dignified old man, with noble features, dressed in regal-sounding red robes. Take a closer look at this man - he seems older than time itself, and his blind eyes are inexplicable just like the young man's rags written in gold. The dominant position of the father in the picture is confirmed by both silent triumph and hidden splendor. It reflects compassion, forgiveness and love.

A father who puts his hands on his son's dirty shirt as if he is performing a sacred sacrament, shocked by the depth of feeling, he should hold on to his son as well as hold him ...

From the noble head of the father, from his precious attire, our gaze descends to the shaved bald, criminal skull of the son, to his rags randomly hanging on the body, to the soles of the feet, boldly exposed towards the viewer, blocking his gaze ..

The master placed the main figures at the junction of the picturesque and the real spaces (later the canvas was added below, but according to the author's intention, its lower edge passed at the level of the toes kneeling son.

At present, the picture has become very dark, and therefore, in normal light, only the foreground is distinguishable in it, a narrow stage platform with a group of father and son on the left and a tall wanderer in a red cloak, who is standing to our right on the last - second - step of the porch. A mysterious light pours from the depths of the twilight behind the canvas.

He gently envelops the figure, as if blinded before our eyes, of the old father, who stepped out of the darkness to meet us, and the son, who, with his back to us, fell to the knees of the old man, asking for forgiveness. But there are no words. Only the hands, the sighted hands of the father gently feel the dear flesh. The silent tragedy of recognition, returned love, so skillfully conveyed by the artist.

SECONDARY FIGURES

In addition to the father and son, 4 more characters are depicted in the picture. These are dark silhouettes that are hardly distinguishable against a dark background, but who they are remains a mystery. Some called them "brothers and sisters" of the protagonist. It is characteristic that Rembrandt avoids conflict: the parable speaks of the jealousy of an obedient son, and the harmony of the picture is not broken in any way.

The woman in the upper left corner

Figure, which resembles an allegory of Love, and, in addition, has a red heart-shaped medallion. Perhaps this is an image of the mother of the prodigal son.

Two figures in the background, located in the center (apparently female, possibly a maid.A seated young man with a mustache, if you follow the plot of the parable, may be a second, obedient brother.

The attention of researchers is riveted by the figure of the last witness, located on the right side of the picture. It plays an important role in the composition and is written almost as vividly as the main characters. His face expresses sympathy, and the traveling cloak put on him and staff in the hands suggest that this, like the prodigal son, is a lonely wanderer.

There is another version that two figures on the right side of the picture: a young man in a beret and standing man- these are the same father and son that are depicted on the other half, but only before the departure of the prodigal son from the house to meet revels. Thus, the canvas, as it were, combines two chronological plans. The opinion was expressed that these two figures are the image of the publican and the Pharisee from the gospel parable.

Flutist

In profile in the form of a bas-relief with right side from a standing witness is a musician who plays the flute. His figure, perhaps, is reminiscent of music, which in a few moments will fill the father's house with the sounds of joy. T.

The circumstances of writing the canvas are mysterious. It is believed that it was written in the last years of the artist's life. Changes and corrections of the original intent of the painting, visible on the x-ray, testify to the authenticity of the canvas.

Drawing from 1642

Rembrandt The Return of the Prodigal Son. etching on paper, State Museum, Amsterdam

How did this painting get to Russia?

Prince Dmitry Alekseevich Golitsyn bought it on behalf of Catherine II for the Hermitage in 1766 from Andre d'Ansezen, the last Duke of Cadrus. And he, in turn, inherited the painting from his wife, whose grandfather, Charles Colbert, carried out diplomatic missions for Louis XIV in Holland and most likely acquired it there.

Rembrandt died at 63 in complete solitude, but discovered painting as a path to the best of all worlds, as the unity of the existence of image and thought.

His work of recent years is not only a reflection on the meanings of the biblical story about the prodigal son, but also the ability to accept oneself without anything and forgive oneself before seeking forgiveness from God or higher powers.

Date of creation: 1666–1669.
Type: canvas, oil.
Location: Hermitage, St. Petersburg.

This masterpiece of biblical art once again confirms Rembrandt's status as one of the best artists of all time and an excellent master of depicting religious subjects. Completed in the last years of the author's life, the painting depicts a scene from the parable told in the Gospel of Luke, according to the plot of which, the father (personifying the Lord) forgives all the sins of his prodigal son.

Historical reference

The religious iconoclasm that followed the liberation of Holland from the colonial yoke of Spain and the Catholic Church resulted in churches with bare walls, intended for sermons and prayers. The Dutch authorities had no desire to decorate altars and temples with frescoes, paintings, or any other form of art. Instead, the country became known to the painting world for its realist paintings, including portraits and still lifes (especially the Vanitas genre). All of these works contained various moralistic messages. It is not surprising that the Dutch came to "Protestant art". It was such a Protestant artist that he became Rembrandt.

Although in Holland there was no longer any need for Christian and altarpiece art, with images of saints, archangels, martyrs, saints, like the work of the Flemish master Peter Paul Rubens, the audience was still interested in themes from the Old Testament, full of dramatic events and educated Rembrandt, with good knowledge of biblical subjects, repeatedly created works based on the stories from this book.

Return of the prodigal son

One of the last paintings of the master does not contain his characteristic dynamism. Like the Old Testament patriarch, the father puts his hands on the shoulders of the penitent, shaven and dressed in shabby clothes. His gestures are accompanied by silence, his eyes are half closed. The act of forgiveness becomes both a blessing and atonement for sins, referring to the ideas of forgiveness of sinners in Christianity. This image is extremely soulful, and spared from all anecdotal aspects. The elder brother of the penitent, standing on the right, according to the original source, reproached his father, since he himself served him for many years without violating the commandments, while the prodigal son wasted money and behaved inappropriately, but Rembrandt left this conversation aside, immersing the action into complete silence. Rembrandt had dealt with the theme of the prodigal son before, as an engraver, and also created sketches and drawings, but in this monumental version one can see the most touching and psychologically complex confrontation between the brothers. The ingenious Rembrandt perfectly reflects the sincerity of the prodigal son, as well as the feelings of a loving and gracious father. A warm and harmonious color palette, including shades of ocher, gold, olive and scarlet tones, creates an extraordinary feeling of calm and tenderness.

Rembrandt created his masterpiece in 1668-1669, and the painting was based on a classic biblical story. However, the religious themes for the artists of that time are quite typical, and the appeal to the Gospel is traditional.

Composition

In the foreground of the painting are characters from the gospel story dedicated to the Prodigal Son. It should be noted that the picture shows not only storyline, but also many personal experiences of the author himself. The artist was already at a mature age, and at that time he was tormented by many doubts about the impossibility of changing anything in the past, as well as about the irretrievably lost years.

Some experts believe that the canvas depicts the embodiment of the main earthly passions, as well as the divine fundamental principle. There is also an opinion that in fact the characters in the picture are hypostases of the artist himself, who is at different stages of spiritual growth and rebirth.

The emotions of the characters in the picture are remarkable. Despite the sins of the youngest son, his old father accepts the prodigal son, and the old man's face shows absolute forgiveness. Moreover, we can safely say that the old man pities his son, forgiving all his mistakes and mistakes.

Technique, performance, techniques

There are red-yellow tones on the canvas, and the background is quite dark. The kneeling pose of the son in front of the old father expresses the repentance of the character, and as an additional symbol of forgiveness and repentance, one can name the fact that his figure is drawn mainly in lighter shades of colors.

The artist paid a lot of time and attention to the smallest details that emphasize the wealth and success of all family members who are present in the picture. At the same time, the bare feet and the poor outfit of a young man on his knees symbolize the brokenness in him, and the fact that he set foot on the path of mistakes and came to an undesirable result for himself.

The strokes are impetuous, carelessly lay down and there are no traces from the attempt to slick the surface of the picture to hide this carelessness of strokes of paint. Transitions from shadow to light emphasize emotionality.

The painting was painted just a few months before the death of the author, and this could not but affect the history of the masterpiece. This is the last thought that the artist managed to express in his work. By the way, in the same years two other famous paintings famous artists, and both were also devoted to the theme of the return of the prodigal son: the work of artists Murillo and Jan Steen.

Canvas, oil.
Size: 260 × 203 cm

Description of the painting "The Return of the Prodigal Son" by Rembrandt

Painter: Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn
Name of the painting: "The Return of the Prodigal Son"
The picture was painted: 1666-1669
Canvas, oil.
Size: 260 × 203 cm

The 17th century is known not only for the end of the Inquisition, but also for the fact that the plot of the biblical parable of the prodigal son became popular. The young man, who took his part of the inheritance and his father, went to travel. It all came down to drunkenness and revelry, and later the young man got a job as a swineherd. After long ordeals and hardships, he returned home, and his father received him and burst into tears.

Artists of that time began to actively exploit the image of the unlucky son, depicting him either playing cards or indulging in pleasures with beautiful ladies. It was an allusion to the frailty and insignificance of the pleasures of the sinful world. Then Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn appeared and in 1668-1669 he created a canvas that was so different from the generally accepted canons. To understand and reveal the deepest meaning of this plot, the artist went through a difficult life path- he lost all the people he loved, saw fame and fortune, sorrow and poverty.

"The Return of the Prodigal Son" is a sorrow for lost youth, regret that it is impossible to return the lost days and food for the minds of many historians and art critics.

Look at the canvas itself - it is gloomy, but filled with a special light from somewhere in the depths and demonstrates the area in front of the rich house. The whole family has gathered here, the blind father hugs his son, who is on his knees. This is the whole plot, but the canvas is special, at least in its compositional techniques. The canvas is richly special inner beauty, it is outwardly ugly and even angular. This is only the first impression, which is dispelled by a mysterious light that goes beyond the boundaries of darkness, capable of capturing the attention of any viewer and purifying his soul.

Rembrandt has the main figures not in the center, but somewhat shifted to left side- this is how the main idea of \u200b\u200bthe picture is best revealed. The artist highlights the most important thing not with images and details, but with light that takes all the participants of the event to the edge of the canvas. It is noteworthy that the eldest son in the right corner becomes the balance for such a compositional technique, and the whole picture is subject to the golden ratio. Artists used this law for the best depiction of all proportions. But Rembrandt turned out to be special in this regard - he built the canvas based on figures that convey the depth of space and open a response scheme, that is, a reaction to an event.

The protagonist of the biblical parable is the prodigal son, whom the artist portrayed as a skinhead. In those days, only convicts were bald, so the young man fell to the lowest level of social strata. The collar of his suit is a nod to the luxury the young man once knew. The shoes are worn almost to the holes, and one fell off when he knelt - a rather touching and poignant moment.

The old man who hugs his son is painted in red robes worn by rich people and appears to be blind. Moreover, the biblical legend does not speak about this, and researchers believe that the whole picture is an image of the artist himself in different images that symbolize spiritual rebirth.

The image of the youngest son is the image of the artist himself, who decided to repent of his misdeeds, and the earthly father and God, who will listen and, perhaps, forgive, this is the old man in red. The eldest son, reproachfully looking at his brother, is conscience, and the mother becomes a symbol of love.

There are 4 more figures in the picture that are hidden in the shadows. Their silhouettes are hidden in a dark space, and the researchers call the images brothers and sisters. The artist would have depicted them as relatives, if not for one detail: the parable tells of the jealousy of the older brother for the younger, but Rembrandt excludes it, using the psychological technique of family harmony. The figures mean faith, hope, love, repentance and truth.

It is also interesting that the master of the brush himself is not considered a pious person. He thought and enjoyed earthly life, possessing the thinking of the most ordinary person with all his fears and experiences. Most likely for this reason, The Return of the Prodigal Son is an illustration of the human path to self-knowledge, self-purification and spiritual growth.

In addition, the center of the picture is considered a reflection inner world artist, his worldview. He is an aloof observer who wants to capture the essence of what is happening and draw the viewer into the world. human destinies and experiences.

The picture is a feeling of boundless joy of the family and fatherly protection. Perhaps, therefore, it is possible to call the main character the father, and not the prodigal son, who became the reason for the manifestation of generosity. Take a closer look at this man - he seems older than time itself, and his blind eyes are inexplicable just like the young man's rags written in gold. The dominant position of the father in the picture is confirmed by both silent triumph and hidden splendor. It reflects compassion, forgiveness and love.

... Rembrandt died at 63. He was an old, poor, angry and sick old man. The notary quickly described his belongings: a pair of sweatshirts, a few handkerchiefs, a dozen berets, art supplies, and a Bible. The man sighed and remembered that the artist was born in poverty. This peasant knew everything, and his life resembled the elements, shaking the soul along the waves of triumph and greatness, glory and wealth, true love and incredible debts, harassment, contempt, bankruptcy and poverty.

He survived the death of two women whom he loved, his students left him and society ridiculed him, but Rembrandt worked the same as in the heyday of his talent and fame. The artist still hatched the plot of the future canvas, picked up colors and chiaroscuro.

One of the greatest masters of the brush died all alone, but discovered painting as a path to the best of all worlds, as the unity of the existence of image and thought. His work of recent years is not only a reflection on the meanings of the biblical story about the prodigal son, but also the ability to accept oneself without anything and forgive oneself before seeking forgiveness from God or higher powers.

Return of the Prodigal Son, ca. 1666-69

"The Return of the Prodigal Son" famous painting Rembrandt on the plot of the New Testament parable of the prodigal son.

Some man had two sons; and the youngest of them said to his father, Father! give me the part of the estate next to me. And the father divided the estate between them. After a few days, the youngest son, having collected everything, went to a far country and there he squandered his property, living dissolutely. When he had lived all, there came a great famine in that country, and he began to be in need; and he went and attached himself to one of the inhabitants of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine; and he was glad to fill his belly with horns that swine ate, but no one gave him. When he came to his senses, he said: how many hirelings from my father have plenty of bread, and I am dying of hunger; I will get up and go to my father and say to him: Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son; accept me as one of your hired hands.
He got up and went to his father. And while he was still far away, his father saw him and had compassion; and, running, fell on his neck and kissed him. The son said to him: Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. And the father said to his servants: Bring the best clothes and dress him, and put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet; and bring a fattened calf, and kill it; Let's eat and be merry! for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found. And they started having fun.
His eldest son was in the field; and returning, when he approached the house, he heard singing and rejoicing; and calling one of the servants, he asked: what is this? He said to him: Your brother has come, and your father killed the fatted calf, because he received him healthy. He got angry and didn't want to come in. His father went out and called him. But he said in response to his father: behold, I have served you for so many years and have never transgressed your orders, but you have never given me even a kid to have fun with my friends; and when this son of yours, who had squandered his possessions with harlots, came, you slaughtered a fattened calf for him. He said to him: My son! you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours, and it was necessary to rejoice and be glad that this brother of yours was dead and is alive again, was lost and was found.

Luke 15:11-32

The plot of the picture

The painting depicts the final episode of the parable, when the prodigal son returns home, “and while he was still far away, his father saw him and took pity; and, running, fell on his neck and kissed him, ”and his elder righteous brother, who remained with his father, became angry and did not want to enter.

Description

This is the largest painting by Rembrandt on a religious theme. Unlike his predecessors Durer and Luke of Leiden, who depicted the prodigal son feasting either in dissolute company or with pigs, Rembrandt focused on the essence of the parable - the meeting of father and son and forgiveness.

Several people gathered in a small area in front of the house. On the left side of the picture, a kneeling prodigal son is depicted with his back to the viewer. His face is not visible, the head is written in profil perdu. The father gently touches his son's shoulders, embracing him. The picture is a classic example of a composition where the main thing is strongly shifted from the central axis of the picture for the most accurate disclosure of the main idea of the work. “Rembrandt highlights the main thing in the picture with light, focusing our attention on it. The compositional center is located almost at the edge of the picture. The artist balances the composition with the figure of the eldest son standing on the right. Placing the main semantic center at one third of the distance in height corresponds to the law of the golden section, which since ancient times has been used by artists to achieve the greatest expressiveness of their creations.

Shaved like a convict, the head of the prodigal son and his shabby clothes testify to the fall. The collar keeps a hint of former luxury. The shoes are worn out, and a touching detail - one fell when the son knelt down. In the depths, a porch is guessed and behind it the father's house. The master placed the main figures at the junction of pictorial and real spaces (later the canvas was placed at the bottom, but according to the author's intention, its lower edge passed at the level of the kneeling son's toes). “The depth of space is conveyed by a consistent weakening of light and shade and color contrasts, starting from the foreground. In fact, it is built by the figures of witnesses to the scene of forgiveness, gradually dissolving in the twilight. “We have a decentralized composition with the main group (event node) on the left and a caesura separating it from the group of event witnesses on the right. The event causes the participants in the scene to react differently. The plot is built according to the compositional scheme "response".

Minor characters

Hermitage employee Irina Linnik believes that Rembrandt's painting has a prototype in the woodcut by Cornelis Antonissen (1541), in which the kneeling son and father are also depicted surrounded by figures. But on the engraving these figures are inscribed - Faith, Hope, Love, Repentance and Truth. In the heavens, an engraving in Greek, Hebrew and Latin says "God". The X-ray of the Hermitage canvas showed the initial similarity of the Rembrandt painting with the details of the mentioned engraving. However, a direct analogy cannot be drawn - the painting has only a vague resemblance to one of Antonissen's allegories (the farthest and almost disappearing in the dark), which resembles an allegory of Love, and, in addition, has a red heart-shaped medallion. Perhaps this is an image of the mother of the prodigal son.

The two figures in the background, located in the center (apparently, a female, possibly a servant or another personified allegory; and a male) are more difficult to guess. A seated young man with a mustache, if you follow the plot of the parable, may be a second, obedient brother. There is speculation that the second brother is actually the previous "female" figure hugging the column. And, perhaps, this is not just a column - in shape it resembles a pillar of the Jerusalem temple and may well symbolize a pillar of the Law, and the fact that a righteous brother is hiding behind it acquires a symbolic sound.

The attention of researchers is riveted by the figure of the last witness, located on the right side of the picture. She plays an important role in the composition and is written almost as vividly as the main characters. His face expresses sympathy, and the traveling cloak put on him and the staff in his hands suggest that he, like the prodigal son, is a lonely wanderer. Israeli researcher Galina Lyuban believes that this image is associated with the figure of the Wandering Jew. According to other assumptions, it is he who is the eldest son, which does not coincide with the age characteristics of the New Testament character, although he is also bearded and dressed like a father. However, this rich clothing is also a refutation of the version, because according to the Gospel, having heard about the return of his brother, he ran straight from the field, where, most likely, he was in work clothes. Some researchers see in this figure a self-portrait of Rembrandt himself.

There is also a version that the two figures on the right side of the picture: a young man in a beret and a standing man are the same father and son that are depicted on the other half, but only before the prodigal son leaves the house towards revelry. Thus, the canvas, as it were, combines two chronological plans. The opinion was expressed that these two figures are the image of the publican and the Pharisee from the gospel parable.

In profile, in the form of a bas-relief on the right side of the standing witness, a musician is depicted playing the flute. His figure, perhaps, is reminiscent of music, which in a few moments will fill the father's house with the sounds of joy.

Circumstances of creation

1636 etching

This is not the only work of the artist on this subject, although he created works with a different composition. In 1636 he created an etching, and in 1642 a drawing (Teyler Museum in Haarlem).

Drawing from 1642

In 1635, he created the painting "Self-portrait with Saskia on his knees", reflecting an episode of the legend of the prodigal son squandering his father's inheritance.

The circumstances of writing the canvas are mysterious. It is believed to be written in Last year artist's life. Changes and corrections to the original design of the painting, visible on x-rays, testify to the authenticity of the canvas.

The traditional dating of 1668-1669, however, is considered by some to be controversial. Art historians G. Gerson and I. Linnik suggested that the painting be dated 1661 or 1663.