Masterful Mystery - On Rembrandt's Enigmatic Contemporary

11 October 2025 till 8 March 2026

Emotion, quietude and melancholy. Phenomenally painted, but by whom? No one knows. The exhibition Masterful Mystery – On Rembrandt's Enigmatic Contemporary brings together for the first time the most important paintings by the 17th-century artist known as Master I.S. Many of these lifelike portraits have never been seen by the public before. View them alongside the work of such contemporaries as Rembrandt, Jan Lievens, and Gerrit Dou, and discover the mysterious story of a great artist whose name has remained unknown.

Anonymous Master

Master I.S. painted people with a keen eye for detail and psychological depth. In this, these works resemble paintings by such Leiden masters as Rembrandt, Lievens and Dou. This is why we believe this artist probably worked in Leiden. Yet, the paintings' subjects also wear heavy fur coats and headwear, which suggest that the artist also travelled in colder European climes. In this exhibition you can follow the tracks of the artist who signed their work I.S. and find out what made them so unique.

On display for the first time

The exhibition brings together for the first time the most important paintings by this anonymous master. This is an unprecedented opportunity to experience the artist's impressive work up close. Many of these works are held in collections around the world and have never before been on public display. They will disappear again behind closed doors at the end of the exhibition. How did this artist manage to capture the souls of these people so well? What clues do the paintings hold about the life of this anonymous artist? Find out at Museum De Lakenhal.

Click here for more information and the programme of activities.