Pieter Haaringh (‘Young Haaringh’)

Description

Pieter Haaringh sits half-length within a dark setting in Rembrandt’s print, his pale head near the center and right beside the panes of a window. The concentrated illumination gives the named sitter a particular presence within the surrounding shadow. Known as Young Haaringh, he remains the image’s human center, allowing one person to carry interest without an elaborate narrative scene.

Made in 1655, the print combines etching, drypoint and burin with a light plate tone. Different kinds of worked marks give the subject a material presence that can be considered beyond the brevity of an ordinary encounter. Rembrandt’s portrait keeps name and appearance connected while leaving the whole life of the sitter outside the frame. The image’s interest lies in that concentration, making one represented person enough to sustain careful and intimate looking.