The Changing Face of Rembrandt: Pedagogy, Politics, and Cultural Values in American Art Education

by Donna M. Tuman

The first official session of the Rembrandt Project took place at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Shortly after our meeting, I walked alone into the Met's Rembrandt gallery, and as I stood before his Self-Portrait of 1660 (Figure 1), without benefit of a digital screen, text, or audio explanation, I became completely immersed in the timeless image of a man painted on canvas more than 346 years ago. I experienced a surge of spiritual energy that animated my imagination, an experience that continues in memory as an authentic human interaction.