Rembrandt: Masterpieces in Black and White Prints from the Rembrandt House Museum at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery

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Thu 06 Mar 2025 - Sun 01 Jun 2025

Rare Rembrandt etchings are going on show in the UK as a collection for the first time in Birmingham. Although famous for his paintings, the Dutch Golden Age artist also produced more than 300 etchings.

'Rembrandt: Masterpieces in Black and White - Prints from the Rembrandt House Museum' opens at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery on March 6 and runs until June 1.

It is the only chance art lovers will get to see these exquisite drawings in the UK on a rare tour from Holland. In the Midlands, the museum at Birmingham's Chamberlain Square near New Street Station is in easy reach by train or car from London, Manchester, Gloucester and further afield for day trips.

Visitors will see Rembrandt's impact on printmaking through a select group of works by his forerunners, contemporaries and later artists. They include work by Rembrandt's teacher Pieter Lastman and his pupil Ferdinand Bol.

It will feature the complete range of Rembrandt’s etchings. This is the first time that the etchings have been brought out of the Netherlands as a collection and is the only opportunity to see the exhibition in the UK. It has been co-organised by the American Federation of Arts and the Rembrandt House Museum.



Curating the exhibition is Epco Runia, Head of Collections at the Rembrandt House Museum. He is a specialist in 17th-century Dutch art, particularly Rembrandt - widely regarded as one of the greatest artists of all time, as seen in his self-portrait etching above in around 1642.

Runia, who began his career at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam and also worked for the Mauritshuis in The Hague, explained why these works by Rembrandt - full name Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn - are so special.

"With this exhibition, we hope to demonstrate that each of Rembrandt's prints is a work of art in its own right," said Runia. "If you take the time to look at them closely, a whole world opens up to you: a world in black and white, but with enormous visual richness."

As a consummate draughtsman, Rembrandt valued the quick lines that one could create with etching, and he exploited this to create masterful compositions that range from staccato arrangements of delicate lines to ponderous representations of dark, shadowy forms. That can be seen in his The Star of the Kings- a Nightpiece from around 1651, pictured below.

Themes through the exhibition will range from Rembrandt’s masterful skills as a visual narrator to his bold exploration of light and dark. Art lovers can also see how he used self-portraits to fashion his own visual identity and explore the complexity of ageing.



Sara Wajid and Zak Mensah, co-chief executives of Birmingham Museums Trust, said: “We are delighted to be working with the American Federation of Arts and the Rembrandt House Museum to host this significant exhibition of Rembrandt’s etchings. We are looking forward to welcoming visitors to Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery for this exclusive opportunity to see such an important collection in the UK.”

Pauline Forlenza, director and chief executive of the American Federation of Arts, added: “Touring 'Rembrandt: Masterpieces in Black and White' in collaboration with the Rembrandt House Museum, the only institution devoted entirely to the artist’s life and work, is an incredible honour.

"Our partnership with the Rembrandt House Museum will allow us to bring these momentous etchings out of the Netherlands for the first time as a collection, for the benefit of audiences in the United States and the UK so that they can experience Rembrandt’s work directly."

The Rembrandt House Museum in Amsterdam is the only museum in the world exclusively dedicated to Rembrandt. All images of etchings shown are courtesy of Rembrandt House Museum.

Tickets are now on sale from Birmingham Museum and Gallery website Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery website . Adult tickets cost £15.50, concessions £8, children under 15 and members go free.

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