Flora

It is very well known that Rembrandt was a prolific portraitist. His reputation among his contemporaries, his self-respect and esteem, his wealth and prosperity largely depended on his activities in this field. Every new portrait was preceeded by a series of preparatory drawings. Preserved untill the present, these drawings show an intensity of his observation of the model and its psychology, the way the light and contour define human form, the fascination with the transformation that different clothing and light effects can create, the examination of the means, methods and tricks that can produce the atmosphere of dramatic melancholy, astonishment, sorrow, unhappiness on the one hand and enjoyment, excitement and euphoria on the other. The model with whom Rembrandt had the closest relationship was his muse, model and beloved wife in one person Saskia van Uylenburgh. She was the daughter of the burgomaster of Leeuwarden and a cousin of the art dealer Hendrick van Uylenburgh for whom Rembrandt worked for four years between 1631 and 1635. Marriage with Saskia brought him a substantial dowry as well as the true love of his life and patrician status. During the 1630s Saskia herself was to be the subject of the largest number of single portraits. Created in the year of their marriage the portrait of Saskia as Flora strikingly reveals the love and admiration the artist felt for his young wife. In Roman religion, Flora was the goddess of flowers and fertility.