11 October 2025 till 8 March 2026

Masterful Mystery – On Rembrandt’s Enigmatic Contemporary

From 11 October 2025 till 8 March 2026, Museum De Lakenhal will present Masterful Mystery – On Rembrandt’s Enigmatic Contemporary. This exhibition brings together the most important paintings by the unknown but very talented 17th-century artist known as Master I.S. Many of these works – with their raw, almost hyperrealistic faces – will be on public display for the first time ever. They will be shown alongside the work of other Leiden masters, such as Rembrandt, Jan Lievens and Gerrit Dou.

Unknown mystery

Master I.S.’s oeuvre consists largely of so-called tronies: depictions of faces, often using models from the artist’s own surroundings. This anonymous contemporary of Rembrandt’s painted with an eye for detail and psychological depth. The artist, who signed paintings with just the letters I.S., is thought to have lived in Leiden at some point. This oeuvre shows strong parallels with the work of other Leiden masters, such as Rembrandt, Jan Lievens and Gerrit Dou.

Master I.S., Portrait of a Woman, ca. 1650 Private collection, with thanks to Nicholas Hall

On show for the first time

Museum De Lakenhal has joined forces with Serlachius Museums in Finland to gather Master I.S.’s most important paintings from national, international and private collections. Many of these paintings have rarely or never been seen before. The exhibition presents the most important works, including new attributions and discoveries, to be exhibited alongside works by the aforementioned contemporaries.

Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn, Old man with fur hat, 1630 Tiroler Landesmuseen Innsbruck

Master I.S., Old man with a fur hat, 1640s Gösta Serlachius Fine Arts Foundation, Mänttä

Extensive research

Underlying the exhibition is extensive research into this master’s work and identity, led by curators Janneke van Asperen (Museum De Lakenhal) and Tomi Moisio (Serlachius Museums), in collaboration with experts from Radboud University in Nijmegen and the Rembrandt House Museum in Amsterdam. This artist’s oeuvre, which probably comprises 25 to 30 paintings, has never been studied before. The outcomes of this research will also form the basis of the publication accompanying the exhibition.

This exhibition is on show at Serlachius Museums in Mänttä, Finland, from 12 April to 17 August 2025. From there it will travel to Museum De Lakenhal in Leiden, where it will be on display from 11 October 2025 to 8 March 2026. In Finland, the story of Master I.S. has already been described as ‘one of the great mysteries of 17th-century Dutch art’.

Master I.S., Man with a Blind Eye, 1653-1655 Private collection, courtesy of Jacques Leegenhoek and Hubert Duchemin

Master I.S., Man with a Growth on His Nose, 1645 Nationalmuseum, Stockholm

Activities

Explore the identity of Master I.S. in the audio tour. Or learn more about the painter in a Sunday Lecture, Lakenhal Late or a guided tour. In the Open Studio, you can get started with a workshop inspired by the painter's work. Keep an eye on the website for the entire program.

Publication

The exhibition will be accompanied by the book Master I.S. - Enigmatic Contemporary of Rembrandt. This book is the first published study of Master I.S. The book is edited by Janneke van Asperen (Curator Museum De Lakenhal) and Tomi Moisio (Curator Serlachius Museums). Also featuring an essay by Volker Manuth and Marieke de Winkel, who have been researching Master I.S. for many years. The book will be on sale in the museum store starting 11 October 2025. The book will be published in English.

Master I.S., Portrait of an Old Woman, 1651 Kunsthistorisches Museum, Wenen

Thanks

The exhibition Masterful Mystery - On Rembrandt's enigmatic contemporary is made possible with the support of the City of Leiden, Mondriaan Fonds, Turing Foundation, Blockbuster Fund, the Culture Fund, the Lucas van Leyden Patronage, Zabawas Foundation, DutchCulture and by the Dutch government: an indemnity grant has been provided by the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands on behalf of the Minister of Education, Culture and Science.