A Young Scholar and his Tutor

Object Details

Title:

A Young Scholar and his Tutor

Artist/Maker(s):

Workshop of Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn (Dutch, 1606 - 1669)

Culture:

Dutch

Date:

about 1629 - 1630

Medium:

Oil on canvas

Dimensions:

102.9 x 88.3 cm (40 1/2 x 34 3/4 in.)

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An elderly man in a subdued green velvet cloak trimmed in fur instructs a boy wearing a lavish Eastern costume. The artist presents a study in contrasts: the student's youthfulness, his smooth complexion, lavish garments, and quest for knowledge are balanced against the learned man's aged, weathered face as he imparts wisdom. A warm light that accentuates the tonal contrasts and rich textures of the velvet and satin fabrics bathes the two figures. Light catches and shimmers off the precious stones of the boy's gold jewelry. Fine, precise brushstrokes enhance the overall impression of softness.

The subjects are presented in the guise of historical personages, possibly portraying the youthful Old Testament prophet Samuel with his instructor Eli. The use of lavish costumes and light and dark contrasts reveal the influence of Rembrandt.

Provenance
about 1631 - 1662

Elizabeth, queen of Bohemia, 1596 - 1662 (The Hague, The Netherlands), commissioned from the artist, about 1631; by bequest to William Craven.

1662 - 1697

William Craven, first earl of Craven, 1608 - 1697 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to William Craven, 1697.

1697 - 1711

William Craven, second baron Craven, 1668 - 1711 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to William Craven, 1711.

1711 - 1739

William Craven, third baron Craven, 1700 - 1739 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to Fulwar Craven, 1739.

1739 - 1764

Fulwar Craven, fourth baron Craven, died 1764 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to William Craven, 1764.

1764 - 1769

William Craven, fifth baron Craven, 1705 - 1769 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to William Craven, 1769.

1769 - 1791

William Craven, sixth baron Craven, 1738 - 1791 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to William Craven, 1791.

1791 - 1825

William Craven, first earl of Craven, 1770 - 1825 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to William Craven, 1825.

1825 - 1866

William Craven, second earl of Craven, 1809 - 1866 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to George Grimston Craven, 1866.

1866 - 1883

George Grimston Craven, third earl of Craven, 1841 - 1883 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to William George Robert Craven, 1883.

1883 - 1921

William George Robert Craven, fourth earl of Craven, 1868 - 1921 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to his wife, Cornelia Martin Craven, 1921.

1921 - 1961

Cornelia Martin Craven, countess Craven, 1877 - 1961 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), upon her death, held in trust by the Trustee of Cornelia Martin Craven.

1961 - 1968

Trustee of Cornelia Martin Craven [sold, Craven sale, Sotheby's, London, November 27, 1968, lot 87 (companion to lot 88), to Herman Shickman Gallery.]

1968 - about 1968

H. Shickman Gallery (New York, New York), sold to Christian Humann, about 1968.

about 1968 - 1982

Christian Humann (New York, New York), by inheritance to Edgar Humann, 1982.

1982 - 1984

Edgar Humann (New York, New York), sold to Herman Shickman Gallery.

1984

H. Shickman Gallery (New York, New York), sold to the J. Paul Getty Museum, 1984.

Exhibitions
Society of Arts Exhibition, 1831 (1831)
  • Birmingham Society of Arts, (Birmingham), 1831, (Cat. 64)
Society of Arts Exhibition, 1833 (1833)
  • Birmingham Society of Arts, (Birmingham), 1833, (Cat. 134)
Coventry Exhibition, 1840 (1840)
  • Coventry Mechanics' Institution, (Coventry), 1840, (Cat. 33)
Society of Arts Exhibition, 1842 (1842)
  • Birmingham Society of Arts, (Birmingham), 1842, (Cat. 54)
Pictures by Italian, Spanish, Flemish, Dutch, French and English Masters (1853)
  • British Institution for Promoting the Fine Arts in the United Kingdom, (London), 1853, (Cat. 47)
Art Treasures of the United Kingdom, Collected at Manchester in 1857 (May 5 to October 17, 1857)
  • Art Treasures Palace, (Manchester), May 5 to October 17, 1857, (Cat. 919)
Dutch Pictures 1450 - 1750 (1952 to 1953)
  • Royal Academy of Arts (London), 1952 to 1953, (Cat. 200)
Rembrandt after Three Hundred Years (October 25, 1969 to April 5, 1970)
  • The Art Institute of Chicago, October 25 to December 7, 1969, (Cat. 37)
  • The Minneapolis Institute of Arts, (Minneapolis), December 22, 1969 to February 1, 1970, (Cat. 37)
  • The Detroit Institute of Arts, (Detroit), February 24 to April 5, 1970, (Cat. 37)
Leselust: Niederländische Malerei von Rembrandt bis Vermeer. (September 24, 1993 to January 2, 1994)
  • Schirn Kunsthalle (Frankfurt), September 24, 1993 to January 2, 1994, (Cat. 24)
The Mystery of the Young Rembrandt (November 3, 2001 to May 26, 2002)
  • Staatliche Museen (Kassel), November 3, 2001 to February 3, 2002, (Cat. 66)
  • Museum Het Rembrandthuis, (Amsterdam), February 20 to May 26, 2002, (Cat. 66)
Bibliography

"Acquisitions/1984." The J. Paul Getty Museum Journal 13 (1985), p. 207, no. 131, ill.

Sutton, Peter C. A Guide to Dutch Art in America (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1986), p. 141.

Fredericksen, Burton B. Masterpieces of Painting in the J. Paul Getty Museum. Rev. ed. (Malibu: J. Paul Getty Museum, 1988), unpaginated, no. 23, ill.

Jaffé, David. Summary Catalogue of European Paintings in the J. Paul Getty Museum (Los Angeles: J. Paul Getty Museum, 1997), p. 36, ill.

West, Shearer. Portraiture (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004), pp. 130, 134-35, no. 83, ill.

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