Ascension of Christ

Artist: Rembrandt Van Rijn

Title: Ascension of Christ

Medium: Oil on Canvas

Date: 1636

Provenance: Alte Pinakothek, Munich

Source: http://www.wga.hu/html_m/r/rembrand/12passio/05passio.html

Describe: Jesus rising to heaven. Angels surround him, lifting him up. People stand at the ground, astounded at what they are seeing. Jesus is bathed in golden light.

Analyze: the colors in this painting are golds, reds, and browns. Jesus is enclosed in a circle-like shape. The value scale goes from brownish-black to white-gold. Jesus is emphasized with golden light. Everyone's eyes are on him, which create movement towards him.

Interpret: the browns show the mundane, human side of things. The golds show the godlike things, like Jesus and the angels. Because Jesus is enclosed in a shape, it symbolizes how no one compares to him. He cannot be put into a category. He is covered in golden light, which makes him the brightest part of the painting. This symbolizes how he should be the focal point of any Christian's life. He is the center of attention, which makes you look at him. He is the main point of the painting.

Judge: I really enjoy this painting. I like how the artist chose to portray such an important scene in Christian history. It really grabs my attention because of the drastic color scale. I think he portrayed the message in a way that we can understand. He is trying to say that Jesus is the most important person.