Art museum to display rediscovered painting 'Rembrandt Laughing'
1/26/2011A rediscovered painting by Dutch artist Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn (1606-1669) will be displayed beginning Friday in Gallery 24 at the Toledo Museum of Art. The oil-on-copper self portrait, about 9-by-6-inches, shows Rembrandt laughing (the name of the piece) at the age of 21 or 22 when he was in his hometown of Leiden. Long ago, the piece had been mistakenly attributed to another artist who reproduced it as an engraving. In 2007, the English family who had quietly owned it for 100 years decided to sell it, expecting a price in the low four figures. But some scholars and art dealers realized that the painting was indeed by Rembrandt himself, and a savvy buyer took it home for $4.5 million. Some experts have put its value at nearly 10 times that much.
Last fall, the new owner, an unidentified Briton, was in Toledo and museum director Brian Kennedy asked if Toledo could borrow the precious work. The owner agreed and the piece will be here for several months, during which Rembrandt lectures are being planned.
"This is one of the most exciting artistic rediscoveries in recent years," said Kennedy. "Rembrandt Laughing is one of the first and most joyful examples of the artist's autobiography in paint."
• Call for artists: Fiber artists have an April 1 deadline to enter a juried Fiber Art Show that will be at the 577 Foundation in Perrysburg. The show aims to display innovative uses of fiber including art quilts, needle arts, wearable art, weaving, and experimental pieces. Entry fee is $15 for one to three items. The show is sponsored by the Perrysburg Area Arts Council. Information: 419-873-2787 and perrysburgarts.org.
• Faculty and staff at the Toledo School for the Arts will open an exhibit of their creative work at a 9 a.m. reception Feb. 4 in the school's Gallerie 333. The show will continue in the school through Feb. 28 at 333 14th Street. The gallery is open for visits weekdays by appointment. Information: 419-246-8732 ext. 291.
• Toledo portraitist Leslie Adams is one of 14 showing their work in Here's Looking at You: Portraits in Ohio, in the Riffe Gallery in Columbus. Media include stoneware, acrylic painting, charcoal, and photography. The display opens Thursday and continues through April 17. The gallery is in the Vern Riffe Center for Government and the Arts, 77 South High St. in Columbus.
Done in charcoal on paper and measuring 60-by-40-inches, Adams' portrait is of Michael Shane Neal, a Nashville artist specializing in commissioned portraits. Free group tours are available Wednesday through Friday by contacting Mary Gray at mary.gray@oac.state.oh.us and 614-728-2239. Information: 614/644-9624 and riffegallery.org.
Adams has also been hired to paint the official portrait of former Gov. Ted Strickland.
• Images by University of Toledo photography students are displayed in a show called The Glass City Landscape: 10 Area Artists Interpret the Urban Landscape of Toledo, at the Parkwood Gallery through Feb. 25. A reception for the students will be 6 to 8 p.m. Feb. 4 in the gallery at 1838 Parkwood Ave. at Monroe Street.
• Erika Herzig's paintings about people and their contradictions will be featured at Downtown Latte, 44 South St. Clair St., Tuesday through Feb. 26. A reception will be noon to 3 p.m. Feb. 5 in the coffee shop.
Items for News of Art should be sent to tlane@theblade.com at least two weeks before the event.