GRAND RAPIDS, MI.-The Grand Rapids Art Museum announced today that is has acquired Rembrandt’s Three Crosses, an engraving which represents the most profound religious work ever created by the renowned artist and printmaker. The masterwork, dating from 1653-55, describes Christ’s crucifixion between two thieves on the hill of Golgotha. The museum has acquired the fourth state of Three Crosses, the culmination of four variations (or states) of the image that Rembrandt reworked on a single metal plate.

The engraving, executed in drypoint with burin, was acquired by the museum with support from Sid and Joanne Jansma. The museum has been actively acquiring works for its permanent collection since announcing the creation of its new, $75 million museum building. Opening October 5, 2007, the new Grand Rapids Art Museum will be the world’s first LEED-certified art museum, and will provide the city of Grand Rapids with its first space designed specifically to house works of art.

“We plan to open the museum’s new Works on Paper Study and Reading Room December 1, 2007, shortly after the general museum opening on October 5. Due to the fragile nature of works on paper, additional time to acclimatize this space is required,” said Museum Director Celeste Adams. “Rembrandt’s Three Crosses is a centerpiece of the museum’s print collection that will continue to grow. This establishes an extraordinary level of quality that we hope to sustain in future acquisitions in all areas of the collection.”

The fourth variation, or state, of Three Crosses represents one of the most profound artistic depictions of death and redemption in history, and reflects Rembrandt’s own meditations on the scripture passage from which the scene was drawn. In the first three states of Three Crosses, which Rembrandt produced in 1653, the narrative action is based upon St. Luke’s account of the Crucifixion – when “darkness covered the earth” and Christ committed his spirit into the hands of his Father. Rembrandt’s earlier versions of the print focused on the immediate death of Christ, the conversion of the centurion kneeling before the cross, and the figures leaving the scene. Two years later, Rembrandt returned to the metal plate and dramatically altered the composition and meaning of the event depicted, imbuing the work with deeply personal and spiritual connotations.