Rembrandt – The Artist in His Studio

The Artist in His Studio is a small painting by Rembrandt from about 1628: a young painter in a long robe stands in an almost empty room, palette and brushes in hand, looking from a distance at a large wooden panel on an easel, turned away from us. The original, oil on panel, is only 24.8 cm high and 31.7 cm wide and belongs to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. We paint it by hand in oil on canvas in 8 landscape sizes, from 50 x 39 to 200 x 159 cm, or to your own measurement, and show it to you in a photograph before dispatch.

The Artist in His Studio – Rembrandt

What does The Artist in His Studio show?

At the back on the left stands the small figure of the painter in a wide robe and hat. In his left hand he holds a palette, several brushes and a maulstick, in his right a single brush. In the right foreground stands a huge easel with a wooden panel turned away from us, so we cannot see what is on it.

The room is almost bare: a table with two bottles, two palettes on the wall and a grinding stone for the paint. The light falls diagonally from the upper left and stresses the distance between the painter and the easel.

What does this painting mean?

The painter is not painting, he is looking. According to Wikipedia it was held in the seventeenth century that an artist had to envision a work completely in his mind before beginning; Rembrandt may have painted exactly that moment.

The blank panel the painter looks at becomes the space for the idea: here art begins in the head, not in the hand. That is why everyone who makes things loves it.

Is it Rembrandt himself?

We do not know. According to Wikipedia some see the young Rembrandt in the figure, others his pupil Gerrit Dou, who came to him at fourteen.

The painting is unsigned, but scholars attribute it to Rembrandt on its colour and technique, when he was 22 or 23. The Wikipedia article sets out both views.

Where is the original today?

In the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, accession number 38.1838.

The museum dates it to about 1628, Wikipedia to 1629; both dates place it in Rembrandt’s Leiden years.

This painting or another Rembrandt?

It looks best in a study, an office, a music room or with anyone who makes things. Rembrandt with a palette in his hand also appears in the Self-Portrait with Two Circles, and his last look at himself in the Self-Portrait at the Age of 63.

From the same Leiden years come The Flight into Egypt and Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem. Early and late famous Rembrandt paintings from our range are on the Rembrandt page.

How does our painter paint this picture for you?

Because the original is the size of a sheet of paper, this Rembrandt reproduction is always larger. In oil on canvas the painter first paints the pale wall and the boarded floor, then the easel and the small figure of the painter.

The finest work is the light on the robe and the narrow shadows that measure the distance across the room. An oil painting reproduction like this shows the texture of wall and boards that a paper print lacks.

Which size is right for your room?

In short: 50 x 39 or 65 x 49 cm for a shelf or a narrow wall, 70 x 57 or 90 x 70 cm above a desk, 110 x 90 and 140 x 111 cm above a sofa, and 160 x 123 and 200 x 159 cm for a large wall.

There are 8 landscape sizes (width x height): 50 x 39, 65 x 49, 70 x 57, 90 x 70, 110 x 90, 140 x 111, 160 x 123 and 200 x 159 cm. The original is only 31.7 cm wide, so even the smallest size is larger. As a painting for the living room above a sofa, 110 x 90 cm suits well.

Because the painter’s figure is small, hang it where you can look at it from close up, with its centre around 150 cm from the floor.

Can I choose another size or a frame?

Yes. The original is roughly 9 : 7 in proportion; in that ratio the painter, the easel and the pale wall all stay. Tell us the size you want for this painting and we will quote a price and a delivery date.

We send it rolled, on a stretcher bar or framed; our workshop in Slovenia prepares every canvas painting. You compare frames for it in the 3D application, which is only for that; seeing it on your own wall is a separate service. Plain dark wood suits the bare room, antique gold the warmth of the light.

When will the painting be with me?

We paint it to order and dispatch it within 15 to 45 working days; the parcel with this painting travels customs-free across the EU. As soon as it is painted we send you a photograph; whatever you would like different, we correct, and our returns policy applies to every order.

For a painter, designer, architect or art student who should choose the size, there is the wall art voucher.

Frequently asked questions

Where is the original?

In the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, accession number 38.1838.

Who is the painter in the picture?

It is not known; perhaps the young Rembrandt, perhaps his pupil Gerrit Dou.

Why can we not see what is on the easel?

Because the panel is turned away from us; the painting is about the idea before the work begins.

How big is the original?

Very small: 24.8 cm high and 31.7 cm wide. Our sizes run from 50 x 39 to 200 x 159 cm.

Is your painting a print?

No, it is a hand-painted copy, painted with a brush in oil on canvas.

Is the painting signed?

No; scholars attribute it to Rembrandt on its colour and technique.

Which size suits an office?

For the wall above a desk choose 70 x 57 or 90 x 70 cm.

Who would like it as a gift?

Painters, designers, architects and anyone who makes things.

• Subject: a young painter with a palette, in an almost bare room, looks from a distance at the panel on a large easel.
• Original: c. 1628, oil on panel, 24.8 x 31.7 cm, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
• Ours: painted by hand in oil on canvas, in 8 landscape sizes from 50 x 39 to 200 x 159 cm or made to measure.
• Worth knowing: who the painter in the picture is remains open: Rembrandt or his pupil Dou.