Rembrandt's portraits of Marten and Oopjen will go to the Louvre for 5 years

Rembrant's life-size paintings of Marten Soolmans and Oopjen Coppit will soon be sent to Paris, where they will be put on display at the Louvre for five years. The two-meter tall portraits have been at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam for the past five years.

The Rijksmuseum will first examine the portraits in their restoration studio before sending them to France. "They can be seen in the Louvre from February 21, after which they can be admired again by the public in the Rijksmuseum from 2029." the Amsterdam museum said.

The paintings were commissioned by Soolmans and Coppit in 1634 shortly after they married. They were painted when Rembrandt was 28, and are the only pendant portraits he produced at this size. "The meticulous rendering of the rich costumes, the mobility of the figures and the nuanced lighting show the young Rembrandt at his best. The paintings must have made a great impression at the time and undoubtedly served as a prelude to Rembrandt's Night Watch in 1642," the Rijksmuseum stated.

The Rothschild family in France took ownership over the two portraits in 1877 until the Netherlands and France jointly purchased them for 160 million euros in 2016. Initially, the Dutch State and the Rijksmuseum together put together their own 160 million euro bid for the portraits. Intense pressure and criticism on the French cultural minister at the time, Fleur Pellerin, soon followed after she granted an export license for the artworks.

The French State eventually offered to put up half the money in a joint deal with the Netherlands that was negotiated when Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte met with French President Francois Hollande at a UN summit in New York in September 2015. Former Dutch Culture Minister Jet Bussemaker was also accused of being unclear when claiming the Netherlands could solely obtain the paintings without objection from the French.

"The fact that the Netherlands and France have jointly acquired Marten & Oopjen is unique and an example of the close historical and cultural bond between both countries," said Rijksmuseum Director Taco Dibbits in a statement on Wednesday. "Over the past five years, Marten & Oopjen have become absolute crowd favorites in the Rijksmuseum. They will also play an important role in the presentation of Dutch painting in the Louvre."

The Rijksmuseum has had the paintings on display since July 2016, a period which also covered the coronavirus pandemic. After the exhibition of the portraits at the Louvre concludes in 2029, the paintings will move back and forth between Paris and Amsterdam for periods of eight years. The two paintings will always be displayed together, the museums agreed.