Windmills. Tulips. Wooden clogs with pointed tips. Folk costume.... These are the symbols of Netherlands (or Holland) - an Europe country that I yet set foot on, though I've been to this part of the world for almost 1o times. The beautiful images of the country was the backdrop of the Hongkong drama (僵). Of course, I'm not there to seek exciting encounters withe the vampires, but the beautiful landscape that also comes with the architecture (both old and new).

Day 2 (Wed 20170607): Rijksmuseum


 
This is the main museum highlight in Amsterdam, where one could find several masterpieces that are placed in the Gallery of Honour.   

LINK to Rijksmuseum


The Night Watch by Rembrandt.
 This is the main attraction in the Rijksmuseum 镇馆之宝

From Wikipedia, "Militia Company of District II under the Command of Captain Frans Banninck Cocq,[1] also known as The Shooting Company of Frans Banning Cocq and Willem van Ruytenburch, but commonly referred to as The Night Watch (Dutch: De Nachtwacht), is a 1642 painting by Rembrandt van Rijn. It is in the collection of the Amsterdam Museum but is prominently displayed in the Rijksmuseum as the best known painting in its collection. The Night Watch is one of the most famous Dutch Golden Age paintings."  

Click HERE to read more about "The Night Watch"
Click HERE to learn more about Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn

 
Other that left deep impressions are include (just to name a few):
  • The Milk Maid (Het Melkmeisje) by Vermeer (LINK to read more)
  • The Saint Elizabeth’s Day Flood, Master of the St Elizabeth Panels, c. 1490 - c. 1495 (LINK 1, LINK 2 to read more)
  • A Windmill on a Polder Waterway, Known as ‘In the Month of July’, Paul Joseph Constantin Gabriël, c. 1889 (LINK to read more)
  • Winter Landscape with Ice Skaters, Hendrick Avercamp, c. 1608 (LINK to read more)
What I found most interesting in this visit was how to read the masterpieces by the great artists, to learn the story behind the painting, the story behind them, and get to know them, know the era much better.

This could be accomplished without the fantastic work behind the curator and the thinking behind - how to organise the exhibits so that the visitors get to slowly walk into the life of the paintings and the life of the artists!

Apart from the descriptions of the painting (placed behind them), special reading cards were prepared for the masterpieces that provided a breakdown explanation of each part of the painting.

Some learning points when "reading" the paintings:
  • Which perspective was the artist drawing from - frog eye perspective, bird eye perspective.
  • The choice of shades - why certain figures/ characters are painted with brighter colour and why some looked dimmer (which obviously, the less important people).
  • In many paintings, the artist included themselves (normally at some inconspicuous corners); some even embed their signatures on the walls or corners of the painting.
  • The culture and practices in the era that the painting was commissioned.
  • Indeed, the elements/ events captured in the painting might take place at the same time or different time. Some artists assembled the happenings into one single painting to tell the story (e.g. The flood).
  • There were also paintings that told stories related to moral values - some were more straightforward, from the gestures, facial expressions or scene it presented. For some, the quotes or the chapter number from some holy books were embedded in the painting. 
  • It was also very interesting to see how the artist took into account the light source - that made the painting looked real - e.g. where the sunlight probably came in through, where the shadow of the hand was casted, etc. These were details that never crossed my mind that the artist would take these into account. (Or, was it because I did not pay enough attention during the art lessons in my secondary school days?)
It was an amazing 3-hour visit - a wonderful learning experience!


Something that we could not miss would be the stained glasses.
Guess who were these people?

















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