by the emanation of light from several different sources. The torch carried by St. Joseph, the fire around which the shepherds have gathered and the moon, which is just rising of the starlit sky over the dark masses of the foliage and is reflected in the calm waters of the lake. Then take into account the painting of the same image by Rembrandt. In the foreground we see the Holy Family resting by the fire, lighted by the some shepherds and reflected in a little pond. The moon is just breaking through the clouds, and the masses of foliage and the castle with lights in its windows tell as a dark silhouette against the sky. The picture is so similar in composition and effect to the one by Elsheimer that it would be easy to think that they were by the same artist, however there is a far greater freedom of handling and richness of tone in Rembrandts work. (Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn. Rembrandt: selected paintings.)From the very beginning Rembrandt used chiaroscuro in his own individual manner. In the works by Caravaggio and his early followers the light and shade are intensely contrasted, and there is little penumbra transition. In their pictures, sharp borders between the illuminated and the shadowed parts create the effect of clear-cut contours, and because of this, figures as well as separate objects stand out with a pronounced sculptural character against a dark and rather spaceless background. In the Money Changer, Rembrandt takes up the problem of the light and shadow produced by the flame of the taper, covered by the old mans hand. Here there is no doubt he was inspired by Honthorsts example, carefully studied the colored reflections on the face of his model and the other objects in the room. However there is a difference between this nocturnal scene by Rembrandt and that of Hosthorst. Rembrandt surpassed his model in unifying light and atmosphere throughout the interior. In his St. Paul in Contemplation, the light an...
