Amsterdam–Monday

Today we spent HOURS at the Rijksmuseum, and only left when they rang the bell and threw us at at closing time!

The most famous painting on display is Rembrandt's The Night Watch.

To sum it up The Night Watch was at its time a leap forward/ a shift in the genre. To compare to our generation,  how Star Wars changed movies and special effects forever  ……. (The beloved censor says that this is a very dodgy comparison and again wonders at how my mind works).

And for those Dear Readers who would like a little further education on this famous artwork please read below, and the rest of you are welcome to skip this bit…

Militia Company of District II under the Command of Captain Frans Banninck Cocq, also known as The Shooting Company of Frans Banning Cocq and Willem van Ruytenburch, but commonly referred to as The Night Watch (Dutch: De Nachtwacht), is a 1642 painting by Rembrandt van Rijn. It is in the collection of the Amsterdam Museum but is prominently displayed in the Rijksmuseum as the best known painting in its collection. The Night Watch is one of the most famous Dutch Golden Age paintings.

The painting is famous for three things: its colossal size (363 cm × 437 cm (11.91 ft × 14.34 ft)), the dramatic use of light and shadow (tenebrism) and the perception of motion in what would have traditionally been a static military group portrait. The painting was completed in 1642, at the peak of the Dutch Golden Age. It depicts the eponymous company moving out, led by Captain Frans Banning Cocq (dressed in black, with a red sash) and his lieutenant, Willem van Ruytenburch (dressed in yellow, with a white sash). With effective use of sunlight and shade, Rembrandt leads the eye to the three most important characters among the crowd: the two gentlemen in the centre (from whom the painting gets its original title), and the woman in the centre-left background carrying a chicken. Behind them, the company's colours are carried by the ensign, Jan Visscher Cornelissen. The figures are almost life-size.

Rembrandt has displayed the traditional emblem of the arquebusiers in a natural way, with the woman in the background carrying the main symbols. She is a kind of mascot herself; the claws of a dead chicken on her belt represent the clauweniers (arquebusiers), the pistol behind the chicken represents clover and she is holding the militia's goblet. The man in front of her is wearing a helmet with an oak leaf, a traditional motif of the arquebusiers. The dead chicken is also meant to represent a defeated adversary. The colour yellow is often associated with victory. (Wikipedia)

…And doesn't every great painting deserve to portray a woman carrying a chicken…

There has been a shift in the attitudes of galleries in allowing visitors to take photos.

Basically they have given up because its too difficult to police. Yippee!

In the past I have often wandered around galleries and played a little game that I like to call

Spot the Doggie.

Now I can share this with you Dear Readers!

Here are some snippets from great works of art that we saw today that include dogs.

But wait there's more!

I think I may write a book..

‘The role of the doggie in art through the ages”…

Or I could write and present a  great BBC documentary. Could someone please let the BBC know I’m available?

And I even have a sequel planned about monkeys, as there are lots of those in paintings as well!

Above, a merry family lunch, including the kid smoking a pipe in the window…

And above – this may just appear to be an angry swan… but hang on, what's that in the corner?

And, as its currently the Light Festival we did an evening canal cruise to see the lights.

Ummmm, cant say we were terribly impressed with the light show. But it was nice looking into the rich folks houses with their Christmas decorations up…

We haven't been run over by a bicycle yet, but it is only a matter of time…