Shop art print and framed art The Nightwatch by Rembrandt

Birth of The Nightwatch, a prestigious commission

The Nightwatch, from its real title Officiers and other artillerymen of Amsterdam District II, led by Captain Frans Banninck Cocq and Lieutenant Willem van Ruytenburch, is a work painted by Rembrandt in 1642. This large-format canvas, measuring 3.63 meters high by 4.37 meters wide, preserved at Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum, was commissioned by Frans Banning Cocq and Willem van Ruytenburch, respectively captain and lieutenant of the company of civil guards in Amsterdam's Quarter II, a bourgeois militia responsible for maintaining order and defending the city.

At the time, guard companies were important institutions in Dutch society, and it was common for them to commission group portraits from renowned artists. Captain Frans Banning Cocq, an important figure not only in the militia, but also in the city of Amsterdam, of which he would later become burgomaster, wanted a grandiose portrait of his company for the Kloveniersdoelen, a building used as headquarters and firing range. Rembrandt, then a leading painter in Amsterdam, was chosen to create this ambitious work.

Rembrandt's Night Watch: a dynamic, theatrical show

Far from the conventional, static group portraits of the time, Rembrandt chose to depict the company in action, emerging from their headquarters and preparing to parade. The scene is animated and teeming with detail: the figures, dressed in colorful, richly ornamented costumes, bustle and overlap, creating an impression of movement and depth. Light, the central element of the composition, streams from the center of the picture, illuminating the faces and gestures of the two main characters, while the other figures are plunged into a mysterious penumbra. This play of light and shadow, characteristic of Rembrandt's style, lends the painting a dramatic, theatrical atmosphere.

Frans Banning Cocq and Willem van Ruytenburch: central figures in The Nightwatch

At the center of the composition, Captain Frans Banning Cocq, dressed in black with a red scarf, stands out clearly against the dark background. He is giving orders to his lieutenant, Willem van Ruytenburch, dressed in a bright suit, who appears in the foreground, sword in hand. Around them, company members bustle about: one man loads his musket, another beats the drum, a third carries the company flag. Each character is unique and expressive, and seems to play a precise role in this dynamic staging.

Symbols and allegories from The Nightwatch

The Nightwatch is rich in symbols and allegories. The light emanating from the captain and his lieutenant symbolizes their authority. The bright colors of the costumes and the glittering weapons evoke the wealth and power of the militia. The female figure, fully lit on the left and in the background of the two main characters, wearing a dead hen on her belt, is, according to various interpretations, either a company allegory or a mythological figure. As is generally the case in paintings from this period, the presence of a dog on the right-hand side of the picture symbolizes loyalty and vigilance. Every detail thus contributes to the complex narrative and symbolic richness of the work.

The Night Watch: a turning point in Rembrandt's career and in art history

Although Rembrandt had a well-established reputation, legend has it that The Night Watch, initially admired for its dynamism and precision, also drew criticism from certain members of the company, unhappy at not being depicted as prominently as the captain and his lieutenant.

A painting paid for at a high price by the company, this controversy would have contributed to the decline in Rembrandt's popularity, marking the beginning of a difficult period for the artist. It's more likely, however, that the death of Rembrandt's wife, excessive prices and changing fashions instead took their toll on the artist's production and success, The Nightwatch having been rather well received on its presentation.

Whatever the case, The Nightwatch is today considered one of the most important works in the history of art. It revolutionized the genre of group portraiture, introducing a previously unseen narrative and dramatic dimension. The work's interplay of light and shadow, dynamic composition and rich symbolism have influenced many artists, and continue to fascinate viewers the world over.

This artwork is a painting from the renaissance period. It belongs to the flemish & northern renaissance style.

« The Nightwatch » is kept at Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Find the full description of The Nightwatch by Rembrandt on Wikipedia.