In the center of Eindhoven is a container containing three canvases with a drawing of part of Nachtwacht. Random passers-by are asked to come and paint. This way they can feel what it is like to be in Rembrandt’s shoes. Freek van Bavel (11) is one of the first to get started with a brush: “This is rare. I don’t think I’m as great as Rembrandt, but I think there’s definitely something in it.”
The project is part of the national AVROTROS program ‘The Secret of the Master’, in which top experts reconstruct Rembrandt van Rijn’s masterpiece. Eindhoven residents can participate in painting a public version of one of the most famous paintings in the world and discover whether there might be a real Rembrandt hidden in them.
The Eindhoven canvases will soon form half of the public version of Rembrandt van Rijn’s masterpiece. The other half is painted by residents of Leiden, creating a ‘public night watch’.
The reconstruction can be followed in the program ‘The secret of the Master’. Two of the program’s four top experts are also in Eindhoven. One of them is artist and researcher Lisa Wiersma. She had been painting for months. In the container she looks with interest at how the ordinary Eindhoven resident approaches it.
“We want to instill the love for painting and art. We hope that people will discover that that is something you can learn. That you can try it. Freek had already thought of what he wanted to do and he started it accurately.”
Restorer and expert of the program Michel van de Laar is also in Eindhoven. “Frank is doing very well. You can tell by his attitude that he does it more often. Eindhoven is a great city with many people on the streets. They are queuing up to take over Freek’s brush, but we’ll let him continue for a while.”
Students from the creative vocational school SintLucas in Eindhoven would also like to participate. Elise Beenen seized her chance: “It is nice to work on such a large canvas. I eventually want to restore paintings.”
The final result of the ‘public night watch’ will be online later. Anyone who wants to can come and paint on the 18 Septemberplein in Eindhoven until Sunday between ten o’clock in the morning and five o’clock in the afternoon. On Friday evenings this is possible until eight o’clock in the evening.