This one works well as a lunch and learn: accessible from the first minute, nothing to prepare, and easy to join for one hour of the day.
We know Rembrandt as a painter and do not immediately think of him as a 'businessman'. However, the reality was far from this. Rembrandt has a story that often remains underexposed, full of intrigue, brutality and tough negotiations.
As an entrepreneur, he knew exactly what was in demand and he continued to innovate himself. In this session, Koos de Wilt takes you on a journey back to the 17th century where our most important Dutch master of that time continued to confront problems in his own way.
During the expert session, Koos de Wilt engages the audience through a slideshow presentation and interactive Q&A sessions. He discusses Rembrandt's connection to the Dutch Golden Age and the impact of commerce on his artistic career.
Using live demonstrations, Koos shares insights into Rembrandt's innovative approaches to earning income as an artist and debunks common misconceptions about his financial success. Additionally, he incorporates audience participation by asking them to identify authentic Rembrandt paintings and answering their questions in real-time using the chat function.
Gain a deeper understanding of how the prosperity of the Netherlands during the 17th century, primarily generated through grain trading and shipping, influenced the art world and artists like Rembrandt.
Learn from Rembrandt's innovative approaches to earning income as an artist, including selling self-portraits as marketing tools and capitalizing on the demand for his art by teaching students and selling their work.
Understand how Rembrandt's financial downfall was not due to a lack of focus on art but rather his failure to adapt to shifting economic circumstances, emphasizing the importance of staying resilient in the face of market changes.
In this expert session, art historian and entrepreneur Koos de Wilt delves into the intriguing connection between the Dutch Golden Age and the world of art, specifically focusing on Rembrandt's role as a merchant and entrepreneur. He introduces himself and the topic of his lecture: Rembrandt, the merchant and entrepreneur.
The speaker begins by asking attendees if they recognize the famous painting "The Night Watch" by Rembrandt, which is displayed on the screen. He explains that this painting holds great significance during the Dutch Golden Age (17th century), a period known for its immense prosperity primarily driven by grain trading and shipping.
De Wilt shares insights into how this economic boom influenced Rembrandt's career, as his clientele consisted mainly of wealthy merchants who had amassed fortunes from these trades. He then provides a captivating slideshow to illustrate the importance of the VOC (Dutch East India Company), which played a significant role in Amsterdam's growth as both an artistic and commercial hub during this era.
Throughout his lecture, De Wilt emphasizes how Dutch art evolved due to this influx of wealth from merchants, with genre paintings gaining popularity and depicting everyday life becoming increasingly popular. He discusses influential artists like Huygens and Vermeer whose works were highly sought after during this time.
De Wilt continues the expert session by discussing Rembrandt's innovative approaches to earning income as an artist. He highlights Rembrandt's early accomplishments, which included buying a prestigious house in Amsterdam, and shares that the painter earned significant revenue from selling portraits, group portraits, self-portraits, etchings, and even teaching students.
The session then delves into Rembrandt's challenges, including his strained relationship with the Amsterdam elite and their preference for artists who painted more favorable faces, leading to fewer commissions from this demographic. Despite this, Rembrandt continued to earn money by creating portraits for those outside of the upper echelons of society.
Furthermore, Rembrandt's financial downfall was not due to his obsession with art but rather his inability to adapt to changing economic circumstances. In the 17th century, Amsterdam held the world's economic center, but its position shifted during the Anglo-Dutch Wars, leading to fewer clients for Rembrandt and eventually causing him to go bankrupt.
Despite this setback, Rembrandt continued to create masterpieces, prioritizing artistic expression over commercial success, such as his famous work in the Swedish National Museum in Stockholm. His impact on the art scene was significant, with patrons traveling from far and wide to commission his works.
One notable example is when the Medici family requested a self-portrait but ended up buying another painting instead due to unavailability.
Towards the end of his lecture, De Wilt shares fascinating anecdotes about specific artworks and their worth in both artistic and commercial contexts, such as Rembrandt's self-portraits and the impact of auctions on artists' careers. The session concludes with a brief overview of Rembrandt's financial success during his lifetime and the importance of recognizing the intersection of art and commerce during the Dutch Golden Age.
It is interactive, and the block above says exactly how for this session. Nobody has to speak up who does not want to: the chat and the polls carry most of it, and the questions can come in anonymously.
We know Rembrandt as a painter and do not immediately think of him as a 'businessman'. However, the reality was far from this. It is built for a general working audience: no prior knowledge is assumed, and people who already know the subject get the research and the practical side rather than an introduction.
Yes, and it is one of the sessions we would suggest for it. There is nothing to prepare, it is accessible from the first minute, and an hour over lunch is enough to do it justice.
It runs 45 min / 15 min: the talk, then live questions. All you do is pick a date. We brief Koos, produce the session, host and moderate it, run the Q&A, and send you the report within an hour of the end.
A team, a department, an employee network or every single employee at once, with no cap and no per-seat price. It runs inside your own Microsoft Teams, Zoom or Google Meet, or on a branded page we build. No integration, no login, no company device or e-mail.
The session is delivered in English, Dutch. You can add high accuracy live subtitles in 8, 16 or 24 languages, so everyone follows in their own. That is a paid option, priced by the number of languages you need.
No, and that is by design. There is nothing to install, nothing to integrate and no connection to your systems, so there is nothing for IT to validate: we join your own Teams, Zoom or Meet as a guest speaker, or we host a page and your people open a link. No software, no accounts, and no data of yours that we can reach. It is why hundreds of companies, among them some of the largest technology and financial firms in the world, were able to start within a day.
We never receive or hold personal data about your employees. Because the session runs in your own environment, attendance and identity stay with you, and what we report back is aggregated: numbers, ratings and survey answers, not people. That is also why IT approval usually takes minutes rather than weeks.
You keep the recording and can share it internally. You also get attendance over time, participant ratings for the content and the speaker, the survey answers, and the topics your people asked for next.
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