Old Man with a Gold Chain

Notes from the museum

This compelling figure—fancifully adorned with a steel gorget (armor protecting the throat and upper chest), golden chain, and plumed beret—represents a new commodity on the Northern European art market: a tronie , or character study. While artists had created such studies since the 1500s, Rembrandt and his colleague Jan Lievens made these images into more affordable alternatives to portraits, heightening their appeal by introducing bold visual elements like dramatic lighting, whimsical costumes, and dynamic poses. Rembrandt and his colleagues painted this model frequently; although he has been called “Rembrandt’s father,” recent research suggests that the “Old Man” may have been the keeper of an almshouse in Leiden, the Netherlands. Although tronies were less expensive than commissioned portraits, Rembrandt invested just as much skill in them. The attention given to the folds of flesh beneath the eyes, the prickly, tightly trimmed beard, and the highlights in the gorget and gold chain reveal a talented painter engaged in the joys of painting. The prominent gold chain appears in several works from Rembrandt’s Leiden and Amsterdam periods: He must have had one in his studio. But unlike his acclaimed peers Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck , Rembrandt never received one as a gift from a royal patron.

Text: Art Institute of Chicago (open access). Our full story for this work is coming soon.

Slow Look

1. The whole picture Let your eyes wander. Where do they want to rest?
2. The light Find the brightest spot. What is it showing you?
3. The edges Look at what is half cut off at the borders.
4. One small detail Choose one tiny thing and stay with it for a while.
5. The whole picture again Step back. Has it changed for you?

About Rembrandt van Rijn

Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, known mononymously as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker, and draughtsman. He is generally considered one of the greatest visual artists in the history of Western art. It is estimated that Rembrandt's surviving works amount to about three hundred paintings, three hundred etchings, and several hundred drawings.

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