Rembrandt van Rhijn

Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn (1606-1669) was born in Leiden and the son of a miller. After finishing Latin School, he studied at Leiden University. Rembrandt soon dropped out and became an apprentice painter under Jacob van Swanenburch in Leiden, and later Pieter Lastman in Amsterdam. Back in Leiden, he became an independent artist together with Jan Lievens. At this time, Rembrandt mainly painted biblical scenes in a precise style and with vibrant colors. In 1631, he settled in Amsterdam where he received numerous commissions for portraits. His many pupils included Ferdinand Bol, Govert Flinck and Carel Fabritius. In this period, Rembrandt developed a powerful chiaroscuro, a looser brush and a greater sense of drama. He focused more on historical scenes, and made numerous etchings and drawings.In 1634 Rembrandt married Saskia Uylenburgh. They had a son, Titus, in 1641. A year afterwards, Saskia died. In 1654 Rembrandt had a daughter with Hendrickje Stoffels. During this period, he had accumulated huge debts and was forced to sell his house and property. He died in 1669 and was buried in Amsterdam's Westerkerk.