A major exhibition of Rembrandt prints is on display at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery’s (BMAG) Gas Hall this spring, opening to the public on Thursday 6 of March. The exhibition features works which are usually displayed in Amsterdam's Rembrandt House Museum, who co-organised the exhibition, along with the American Federation Of Arts and BMAG. The works themselves are exquisitely fine images, created through the process of etching and dry point. Rembrandt was a renowned painter and a famous artist in his own time - and these small, highly detailed and replicable prints allowed fans of his work to own a piece of art by the artist himself.

Although many of the works are small - a couple of the images on display are hardly bigger than a postage stamp - the detail and expression is utterly captivating. There are magnifying glasses available in the gallery which reveal just how detailed the images are, and offer a rare opportunity to get up close and personal with the work of a true master.

Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn lived and worked in the 17th century, contributing to the ‘Dutch Golden Age’ of art. He’s famed for creating intricate and expressive portraits, often in paint, but this exhibition opens the door on the artist's significance as a prolific and influential printmaker. Many of the prints on display are also portraits - some of the artist himself, or a wealthy patron, but frequently featuring ordinary people, and scenes of everyday life from the streets of Amsterdam.

The process of etching is also celebrated in this exhibition, with examples of Rembrandt’s own copper plates, displayed beside the prints which they were used to make. Printmaking materials are featured in the gallery, with a video demonstrating the process to help provide an insight into the nature of the art form. Rembrandt is considered a pioneer in the field. He didn't simply use printmaking as a tool to reproduce existing works, as other artists did, but developed his skill to explore the benefits and limitations of printmaking in its own right.

Part of the exhibition explores where Rembrandt sits within the wider history of printmaking - the works that he was inspired by, and the later artists who his work may have inspired. 58 of the prints on display are on loan from the Rembrandt House Museum - making up the bulk of the exhibition - but there are also examples of Rembrandt prints from Birmingham's own collection, and other printed works by renowned artists. In addition, BMAG has provided a spotlight on two Midlands artists, Harry Eccleston and Raymond Cowern, who like Rembrandt were skilled painters and printmakers.

This is the first time that the body of work has been brought out of the Netherlands as a collection, and it is the only opportunity to see the exhibition in the UK. For anyone who has an interest in the art of printmaking, or Rembrandt's intricate mastery of the form, this eye opening exhibition is not to be missed. 

Rembrandt: Masterpieces in Black and White shows at Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery’s Gas Hall from Thursday 6 March until Sunday 1 June