''The Raising of Lazarus'' is an

oil-on-panel A panel painting is a painting made on a flat panel of wood, either a single piece or a number of pieces joined together. Until canvas became the more popular support medium in the 16th century, panel painting was the normal method, when not paint ...

painting by the Dutch artist

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consid ...

from early in his career; it was probably painted between 1630 and 1632. The work depicts the

Raising of Lazarus Lazarus of Bethany (Latinised from Lazar, ultimately from Hebrew Eleazar, "God helped"), also venerated as Righteous Lazarus, the Four-Days Dead in the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the subject of a prominent sign of Jesus in the Gospel of John, ...

as told in the

Gospel of John The Gospel of John ( grc, Εὐαγγέλιον κατὰ Ἰωάννην, translit=Euangélion katà Iōánnēn) is the fourth of the four canonical gospels. It contains a highly schematic account of the ministry of Jesus, with seven "sig ...

, Chapter 11. It is in the collection of the

Los Angeles County Museum of Art The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) is an art museum located on Wilshire Boulevard in the Miracle Mile, Los Angeles, California, Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles. LACMA is on Museum Row, adjacent to the La Brea Tar Pits (George C. Pa ...

Imagery

The painting shows the moment Lazarus re-awakens from death and rises from his tomb as Christ calls him. Lazarus is in the darker half of the painting while the figures at left are far more illuminated than he. Mary and those assembled look on in amazement as Lazarus comes to life. The painting depicts a parable of spiritual life, the miracle of the hardened sinner receiving first grace (sorrow for sins committed in order to seek penitence and redemption). Rembrandt used

chiaroscuro Chiaroscuro ( , ; ), in art, is the use of strong contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition. It is also a technical term used by artists and art historians for the use of contrasts of light to achi ...

(contrasts of light and dark) in this painting, with the dark interior of the burial cave and the limited torchlight focusing the attention of the viewer and giving the figures impact. This is one of relatively few religious subjects from the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

that Rembrandt painted, though there are many such prints.

History

Rembrandt painted ''The Raising of Lazarus'' early in his career, while he was still in

Leiden Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...

, and not long after his apprenticeship under

Pieter Lastman Pieter Lastman (1583–1633) was a Dutch language, Dutch painter. Lastman is considered important because of his work as a painter of history pieces and because his pupils included Rembrandt and Jan Lievens. In his paintings Lastman paid carefu ...

, whose influence is clear. Rembrandt made two etchings on the same subject but with differing compositions, one in approximately 1632 and another in 1642 (see gallery below). The 1632 etching shows a different point of view while the 1642 etching shows different figures in the cave. The 1642 etching also depicts Christ as more of a healer, rather than the enchanter of this work. (Sister

Wendy Beckett Wendy Mary Beckett (25 February 1930 – 26 December 2018), better known as Sister Wendy, was a British religious sister and art historian who became known internationally during the 1990s when she presented a series of BBC television documentar ...

opines that Jesus is portrayed in this work as a weary magician rather than a triumphant savior.) The subject of this painting may draw on an undated Jan Lievens etching of the same name. Lievens and Rembrandt were friends and probably worked together. The composition of the painting may derive from a drawing by Rembrandt from the same time as the ''Burial of Christ.'' Rembrandt would most closely imitate ''Raising of Lazarus'' with his 1635/1639 painting ''The Resurrection.'' The placement of the figures is similar and a study of drawings indicates that the latter was developed from the former.

Provenance

''Raising of Lazarus'' was owned by Rembrandt for most of his life; it was sold in his bankruptcy sale in 1656.Ben B. Johnson, “Examination and treatment of Rembrandt's Raising of Lazarus,” Bulletin of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art 20, no. 2 (1974) It was inventoried as being hung in Rembrandt’s anteroom. The painting passed through various owners in Europe until it was bought by

Howard F. Ahmanson, Sr. Howard Fieldstead Ahmanson Sr. (1906 – June 17, 1968) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He was the founder of an insurance and savings and loan association, H.F. Ahmanson & Co. He made his fortune during the Great Depression ...

in 1959 and then donated to the LA County Museum of Art.

Gallery

Rembrandt made drawings and etchings on the same theme. File:B073 Rembrandt.jpg, etching, c. 1632 File:The Raising of Lazarus LACMA 19.4.31.jpg, etching, 1642 File:Rembrandt 223.jpg, drawing, 1642

References

External links

Los Angeles County Museum of Art collection page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Raising of Lazarus Paintings by Rembrandt 1630s paintings

Collection of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art