Rembrandt - Dutch Painting in the Golden Age Essay

Rembrandt - Dutch Painting in the Golden Age - Essay Example The essay "Rembrandt - Dutch Painting in the Golden Age" discovers Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn's art and Dutch Painting in the Golden Age. His specialty was in the area of portrait painting where he achieved widespread reputation. Another characteristic of Golden Age painting was a focus on realism, yet Rembrandt was renowned for the expressiveness and skill in which he seemed to capture the essence of the individual being painted. To more fully appreciate these characteristics, it is helpful to understand the changes that were taking place in the country at that time and to examine one of Rembrandt’s works such as â€Å"The Noble Slav† executed in 1632.Rembrandt was born into an unprecedented time of prosperity for his country. It was a time in which the Netherlands began to grow in economic scale thanks to a tremendous influx of wealthy merchants and tradesmen into Amsterdam following the fall of Antwerp in 1585. The city was powered by energy provided by windmills , the economy driven by the advent of sawmills and the Dutch people’s historic proficiency in maritime activities quickly enabled them to establish themselves as dominant figures in the contemporary world market. By Rembrandt’s birth in 1606, the Dutch East India Company had already emerged as the world’s first multinational corporation fully engaged in importing the exotic spices and other goods that were making the Netherlands a rich land. In keeping with such dramatic change, the old rules of social status based on birth.