The Storm on the Sea of Galilee

A 1633 oil painting by Rembrandt depicts Jesus calming a storm on the Sea of Galilee. Stolen from Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in 1990, it remains missing.

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum theft: A 1990 robbery in which thieves stole 13 artworks from Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. The painting was among the works stolen, and the case remains unsolved.
Chiaroscuro: The use of strong contrasts between light and dark to model forms and create dramatic effects. Rembrandt uses concentrated light against darkness to intensify the storm’s danger.
Gospel of Mark: A canonical Christian Gospel that presents the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Mark 4:35–41 is one of the accounts behind the depicted miracle.
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: A Boston art museum housed in a Venetian-style palace built by collector Isabella Stewart Gardner. It has displayed empty frames where the stolen paintings once hung.
Jesus calming the storm: A Gospel episode in which Jesus stills a storm on the Sea of Galilee. This biblical episode is the scene Rembrandt chose to depict.
Foreshortening: A technique that depicts an object at an angle so it appears to recede sharply into space. The boat’s tilted, compressed forms make its violent motion feel immediate.
Gospel of Matthew: A canonical Christian Gospel that presents Jesus as the fulfillment of Jewish scripture. Matthew 8:23–27 recounts Jesus calming the storm.
Art theft: The unauthorized taking of artworks from private owners or public institutions. The painting’s disappearance is one of the most prominent modern art thefts.
Rembrandt: A Dutch painter and printmaker of the seventeenth century, known for expressive portraits and biblical scenes. He painted this work in 1633, early in his career.
Tenebrism: A painting style that uses stark illumination against deep shadow, often to heighten drama. Its shadow-heavy atmosphere makes the lit figures and waves stand out.

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