Norton Sets 'Life in Rembrandt's Time'

Rembrandt van Rijn - Self-Portrait with Shaded Eyes
Courtesy of Norton Museum

(Press Release) WEST PALM BEACH, FL (September 2, 2025) — The Norton Museum of Art announces the exhibition Art and Life in Rembrandt’s Time: Masterpieces from The Leiden Collection, a presentation of more than 70 works by 27 artists from The Leiden Collection — one of the world’s most important private collections of 17th-century Dutch art. On view from October 25, 2025, through April 5, 2026, it will be the largest show of privately held Dutch 17th-century paintings ever organized in the United States.

Envisioned to coincide with the 400th anniversary of the Dutch founding of New Amsterdam on the island of present-day Manhattan, the exhibition at the Norton will draw from The Leiden Collection’s unique strength, namely the depiction of humanity in all its facets — from portraits and character studies to genre scenes and historical subjects. It will also offer a rare opportunity to contemplate exceptional works spanning the full career arc of the groundbreaking Dutch artist Rembrandt van Rijn. With 17 of Rembrandt’s paintings on display throughout the galleries, the exhibition will reveal the renowned artist’s singular ability to capture human expression and emotion, as well as fascinating evolutions in both his style and technique.

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​Organized thematically, Art and Life in Rembrandt’s Time will invite visitors to explore the breadth of the painters’ skill and the timeless resonance of their works, as well as to learn more about the day-to-day activities of citizens from that period. Through the prism of the 17th-century Netherlands and its leading artists, the exhibition will shed light on a crucial era of innovation in the history of art. Indeed, the creative breakthroughs and transformative impact of Rembrandt and his peers can still be felt today, having altered the trajectory of art from Impressionism and Expressionism, all the way through to modern and contemporary movements.

“One of the most remarkable facts about Rembrandt and his circle is that their artworks continue to connect with audiences, hundreds of years after they were painted,” said Elizabeth Nogrady, Curator of The Leiden Collection. “These artists had an uncanny ability to tap into the continuity of human experience, which makes them continually relevant -- even in very different times.”

The exhibition reflects The Leiden Collection’s mission of building bridges through art and will follow its blockbuster shows at some of the most prestigious national museums in the world including the Louvre, the Pushkin and Hermitage museums, the National Museum of China, and Louvre Abu Dhabi.

“An exhibition like Art and Life in Rembrandt’s Time has never been seen before in our region. Viewers will be enthralled not only by the artistry of Rembrandt, but also the depth of talent of other 17th-century Dutch artists,” said Ghislain d’Humières, Kenneth C. Griffin Director and CEO of the Norton Museum of Art. “It is an honor to host this impressive exhibition at the Norton, the first of its kind in America.”

Of considerable prominence in the exhibition will be Rembrandt’s magisterial Minerva in Her Study, 1635, the most important of Rembrandt’s history paintings in a private collection; the master’s exquisite oval Young Girl in a Gold-Trimmed Cloak, 1632; and his Self-Portrait with Shaded Eyes, 1634, which presents a young Rembrandt staring directly at the viewer. Special highlights include Vermeer’s Young Woman Seated at a Virginal, circa 1670 – 1675 -- the sole example of the artist’s work in private hands, which was featured in the Rijksmuseum’s transcendent show of 2023, Vermeer -- and Hagar and the Angel, circa 1645, the only privately-held painting remaining of Carel Fabritius — Rembrandt’s greatest pupil and the inspiration for Donna Tartt’s 2013 acclaimed novel The Goldfinch. The exhibition will also showcase works by other Amsterdam artists intimately connected to Rembrandt, including his influential teacher, Pieter Lastman, and talented students such as Ferdinand Bol, Govaert Flinck, and Arent de Gelder.

Additional treasures in the exhibition include formal and fantastical portraits, scenes of markets, music-making, biblical stories, labor, play, and other dynamic subjects by various artists from the Dutch city of Leiden. Prominent works include Jan Lievens’ Boy in a Cape and Turban, circa 1631, depicting a youth wearing a luminous, fanciful costume, and his ravishing Self-Portrait, circa 1629 – 1630; Gabriel Metsu’s monumental Woman Selling Game from a Stall, circa 1653 – 1654; Frans van Mieris’ profoundly evocative Traveler at Rest, circa 1657, capturing a confident young man relaxing on the roadside; and magnificent works by Jan Steen including his joyful Self-Portrait with a Lute, circa 1664 and most solemn Prayer Before the Meal, 1660, of a pious family breaking bread. Also represented in the show will be painters who worked in other Dutch artistic centers, among them Hendrick ter Brugghen in Utrecht, Frans Hals in Haarlem, and Gerard ter Borch in Zwolle.

The Leiden Collection, assembled over the past two decades by Thomas S. Kaplan and his wife, Daphne Recanati Kaplan, comprises more than 220 paintings and drawings by many of the finest Dutch 17th-century artists. Named after Rembrandt van Rijn’s native city, The Leiden Collection illuminates the personalities and themes that shaped Dutch art over five generations.

“Since the day Daphne and I founded The Leiden Collection, we conceived of it as a lending library for some of the world’s most consequential artists,” said Thomas Kaplan. “After nearly 15 years of anonymous lending to over 80 museums, armed with a message of Rembrandt as ‘The Universal Artist,’ the Collection has spent the better part of the past decade traveling the world. We are particularly thrilled to be the first to share Rembrandt and Vermeer with my home state of Florida, where I spent a truly wonderful part of my youth. We hope visitors will be as moved as we are by the enduring power of Rembrandt, his students, and his peers.”

The exhibition is accompanied by a fully illustrated, 150-page catalogue with detailed entries on each painting and an exploration of Dutch life in the 17th century.

Art and Life in Rembrandt’s Time: Masterpieces from The Leiden Collection was jointly organized by The Leiden Collection, New York, and the Norton Museum of Art. Curated by Elizabeth Nogrady, Curator, The Leiden Collection; Robert Evren, Consulting Curator for European Art, and J. Rachel Gustafson, Chief Curatorial Operations & Research Officer, the Norton Museum of Art.