The Return of the Prodigal Son
Artist Rembrandt
Accession number 1990-1
In contrast to the anguish of leave-taking as seen in Dürer’s print, here we have the joy of return and reunion.
The Prodigal loses all he has been given, while away from home in a distant country. He is reduced to minding pigs to survive and envying the pods the pigs were fed, yet is welcomed home with open arms, a robe, a ring, sandals, and a party by the father he had rejected in leaving. The desperation of the son and the compassion of the father are both made clear in Rembrandt’s depiction. The image is ironically prophetic of Rembrandt’s own experience as, through his own expensive lifestyle, he goes on to squander the wealth gained through his genius to the extent that he is forced to declare himself bankrupt.
Henri Nouwen, in his book reflecting on Rembrandt’s later ‘The Return of the Prodigal Son’ painting, suggests that the father of the prodigal invites us to experience joy which can be more difficult than experiencing sadness or frustration. Joy, like gratitude, he suggests, is a choice. “It requires choosing for the light even when there is much darkness to frighten me, choosing for life even when the forces of death are so visible, and choosing for the truth even when I am surrounded by lies” (H.J.M. Nouwen, ‘The Return of the Prodigal Son’, Doubleday, 1994, p.115).
The joy of return is that the one who left was though dead to those left behind, yet is now alive again, was lost but is now found.
