Rembrandt was an outstanding thinker among European painters. This painting from 1660 depicts the allegory of Peter denying Jesus three times by the time the cock crows. Well, there is much more than that allegory there, and that surplus is enough to make a museum visit worthwhile, especially if you can see an age-old picture of faulty man – who is us all. Rembrandt is certainly not a contemporary artist in terms of dates and art history periods, but he is when he tells you about maids and those scared by the representatives of power (just think of how often the tough guys brake madly when they see a police car on the roadside). Do we face our everyday cowardly acts, or do we tend to spot other people’s weaknesses only in interesting biblical paintings?
It’s amazing to see a painting of such weight and depth – it’s as if space were thicker behind it. Standing in front of it, you can feel that the time flow now follows a weird sequence in the City Park beyond the etchings on the walls. To avoid becoming dumb in amazement, to be able to think, it’s recommended to reread Old Masters by Thomas Bernhard, and that is true for museum walks in general as well. Note that – once I mentioned the name of this temper artist – it is annoying that the upper section of the painting reflects light, which could have been avoided. The etchings that lead up to the main piece are perfectly illuminated. I, a cautious fan of alternative urban transport having been allowed in several theatre performances with my rollerblades on, so I hereby greet all uncles and aunties who have realised that even crazy people on eight wheels can enter the theatre hall, mapped up the Museum of Fine Arts on blades. Well, I wanted to stand barefoot before such a great piece of art, and I am happy that it came off.