Rembrandt van Rijn, Portrait of Anna Six-Wymer (1584-1654) - before restauration

Oil on panel, 96 x 80 cm

1641

Six Collection, Amsterdam

In the entrance hall to the fair, visitors will be able to make the acquaintance of Rembrandt’s 1641 Portrait of Anna Six-Wymer for the first time. The portrait is of Anna Wymer, the mother of Jan Six, a patron, scholar, poet and lover of the fine arts, who became burgomaster of Amsterdam in 1691. The portrait has been in the Six Collection in Amsterdam since it was painted and has not been exhibited for at least a century in public. In 1989 the Rembrandt Research Project (RRP) rejected it on the grounds that the execution of the dress, the chair and the hands was weak and untypical of Rembrandt. His pupil Ferdinand Bol was suggested as the possible author of the portrait. It has since become increasingly clear that there must have been forms of collaboration between Rembrandt and his pupils, particularly in the production of portraits. Recent technical analysis and restoration by Martin Bijl combined with new art historical insights demonstrate that Anna Wymer’s head and cap are unmistakably by Rembrandt. In the other areas, clearly distinguishable as a pupil’s contribution, Rembrandt made improvements to the ruff, cuffs and hands. Collaboration between a master and his pupils was a common practice among painters who had a productive workshop. Unlike all the other works of art, this one is not for sale.