An old painting from the Studio Of Rembrandt has been restored, and what the conservators have uncovered will shock you.
Unfortunately, this isn’t a Mr Bean situation where the old geezer has zipped on in, damaged the hunk of canvas and hung a new one in its place. But it’s still a good, clean, classical art story.
A painting nearly 400 years old has been declared the work of Rembrandt himself, after sitting in Allentown Art Museum for decades.
The 1632 painting Portrait of a Young Woman had been previously credited to the Studio of Rembrandt, thought to be the work of an unknown artist in his workshop. After a quick (2 year-long) makeover, conservators decided big boy Rembrandt himself was behind the magic.
Layers of overpainting and dark, thick varnish that had been added over centuries obstructed the original brushwork underneath. The painting was sent to New York University for conservation and cleaning, where restoration artists began to suspect the work was a Rembrandt original.
Shan Kuang, a conservator at NYU, comments on the “liveliness to that brushwork, that is quite consistent with other works by Rembrandt.” X-ray, infrared and electron microscopy technology was used to peel back the mystery of the oil paint.
“We’re very thrilled and excited,” the vice president of the museum said. “The painting has this incredible glow to it now that it just didn’t have before. You can really connect with the portrait in the way I think the artist meant you to.”
Rembrandt’s artwork will go on public display starting June 7, if you’re ever in (Allen)town.
In closing, Portrait of a Young Woman has regained her glow. And how young and womanly she is.
