The Civic Museum Ala Ponzone in Cremona hosts an exhibition dedicated to Rembrandt and Dutch painting of the seventeenth century, born from an important exchange of works.

The protagonist of the exhibition is the painting Portrait of a man in oriental costume by Rembrandt, coming from the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam and loaned in exchange for the Ortolano by Giuseppe Arcimboldi, currently exhibited in the Netherlands. The arrival of this work in Cremona offers the opportunity to present to the public a glimpse of Dutch painting of the seventeenth century.

Rembrandt's painting belongs to the typology of the so-called "character heads": it is not a true portrait, but an invented figure, constructed through the expressive study of the face and the richness of the clothing.

Around this extraordinary painting — exemplary of the great season of Dutch painting and the lesson of the master from Leiden — a exhibition of about forty works takes shape. The paintings mostly come from the collections of the Civic Museum Ala Ponzone, in particular from the Legacy of Giuseppe Sigismondo Ala Ponzone, and also include some works generously loaned by private collectors. Some paintings have been specially restored for the occasion.

The exhibition path covers the main genres of Dutch painting — sacred subjects, genre scenes, portraits, still lifes, landscapes, and views — offering a significant overview of the relationship between this artistic tradition and the Cremonese context, through the study and enhancement of the works preserved in the city.

Entry to the exhibition is included in the museum ticket.