Description
Portrait of Isaac and Rebecca, commonly known as The Jewish Bride, is a fascinating painting by Rembrandt.
According to his letters, Vincent van Gogh burst into tears in front of this magnificent work of art, writing that he would gladly give ten years of his life to sit in front of the painting for two weeks, eating only a stale crust of bread. Although modern viewers may require a bit more sustenance, the power of the image remains.
In the center of a horizontally oriented canvas, a woman in a luxurious red dress stands with her wrists and neck covered in pearls. Her partner stands to her right, one arm reaching out behind her, the other reaching out to put a hand on her chest. It is equally richly dressed in a vertically pleated garment over a shirt in shades of gold and brown.
The fingers of her left hand rest gently on his in a protective and touching gesture. The two figures, despite the intimacy of their gesture, do not look at each other, nor do they look at the viewer. They are alone at the moment, next to an archway and a potted plant barely indicated in shades of dark brown and mottled.
To prevent him from being killed and King Abimelech from capturing his wife, Isaac hid his love for Rebekah by pretending they were brother and sister. However, their intimacy betrayed them when they thought they were not being spied on. Rembrandt portrays them in a tender moment. In addition, he works with exceptional freedom, applying the paint thickly and scratching it with the tip of his brush.