Drawing out Rembrandt (DoRe)

About the project

Drawings play a vital part in Rembrandt’s artistic process, and are a source of knowledge about his matchless talent. The Rijksmuseum has 65 of his drawings spread over 58 sheets, the majority of them in pen and ink.

The pen drawings no longer look the way they did in Rembrandt’s day. The brown ink was often black originally, and in some cases it has also suffered from iron-gall ink corrosion, many of the white corrections or highlights have become transparent, discoloured or oxidised, and occasionally it seems that the paper has discoloured too. It is sometimes difficult to ‘read’ the drawings properly, making it hard to decipher the artist’s intentions.

Aim of the project

Rembrandt’s pen drawings in the Rijksmuseum will be investigated with the latest, non-invasive research methods, such as macro-XRF and multi-modal forensic imaging in a joint project that brings together paper conservators, scientists and art historians of the Rijksmuseum, the Rijksdienst voor Cultureel Erfgoed (RCE, Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands), the University of Amsterdam and the University of Utrecht, under the umbrella of NICAS (the Netherlands Institute for Conservation, Art and Science).

This research aims to identify the drawing materials and to reconstruct the original appearance of the drawings, including the way they were made. Additionally, it will aim to predict any further aging process. That latter is important for the present and future care and preservation of Rembrandt’s drawings throughout the world.

Related publications

• P. Schatborn, red. J. Turner, Drawings by Rembrandt and his School, Bestandscatalogus Online (2017)
• B. Reissland, Drawing in the Age of Rembrandt; Implements, Techniques and Changes over Time (Dissertation in preparation, University Utrecht, led by Jeroen Stumpel)

Related events

Drawings by Rembrandt: Connecting Art History, Science and Conservation
International congress organised by the Rijksmuseum, Museum Het Rembrandthuis and and the RCE, 6-7 February 2020

Laboratorium Rembrandt: Rembrandts techniek ontrafeld
Tentoonstelling in Museum Het Rembrandthuis, 21 september 2019 – februari 2020 Inhoudelijke bijdrage in samenwerking met Leonore van Sloten, conservator van de tentoonstelling

Partners and sponsors

This project is supported by the Ed Veenendaal Fonds/ Rijksmuseum Fonds and the Van der Klaauw Fonds/ Vereniging Rembrandt.

Drawing out Rembrandt is a collaboration between the Rijksmuseum, the Rijksdienst voor Cultureel Erfgoed (RCE), the University of Amsterdam, Utrecht University and the Netherlands Institute for Conservation+Art+Science+ (NICAS).