The collection of Dutch paintings from the 17th and early 18th centuries is the largest and most valuable collection of old European art, administered by the National Gallery in Prague. Its significance far surpasses the boundaries of the Czech Republic. The collection represents virtually all the genres and schools of painting, as well as most of the grandest names of the Golden Age of Dutch art. However, up to now, less than one-tenth of the nearly 600 paintings in the collection have been on public view.

The National Gallery in Prague has decided to make use of the fact that the character of the collection constitutes an ideal framework for holding a superb, comprehensive exhibition of Dutch art. Based on broad international collaboration, for the following three months the Gallery will show, alongside its own holdings, the finest loans from abroad and the Czech Republic, offering the public a representative survey of Dutch painting dating from the Baroque era.

This event is not simply a temporary expansion of the Gallery's permanent collection. The exhibition is the result of a years-long research project, during which many of the paintings underwent extensive technical examination and restoration. In the case of a number of prominent works, their real authors have been re-attributed, or their themes identified or determined with greater accuracy. Hence, this is a qualitatively new evaluation of the Gallery's holdings of Dutch art, whose importance worldwide will be further strengthened through the recently-published English-language Inventory Catalogue.

Some 120 paintings in total will be presented at the exhibition. Concurrently, a representative survey of Dutch engravings of the 17th and early 18th centuries will be shown, including some of Rembrandt's works. Among the prints featured will be his Hundred Guilder Print - one of the most illustrious examples of the art of engraving. Its name was inspired by Rembrandt's own assessment of this large print's price, that of one hundred guilders - a vast sum of money in those days. In doing so, the artist declared that, in terms of its value, the print was on a par with his painted works.

Selected pieces lent by prestigious art institutions from abroad and the Czech Republic will be exhibited together with the finest Dutch works from the National Gallery's core collection. Rembrandt's Man in an Oriental Costume from the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam will be the most significant of all the paintings on loan. Painted in 1635, the portrait features the same sitter as the man Rembrandt had depicted a year earlier in the highly-acclaimed Scholar in His Study. As Rembrandt's Scholar is permanently housed in the National Gallery, it is after many centuries that these two masterpieces - related through their painter and model - will appear again in close proximity.

From February to May 2012, noteworthy paintings on loan from The Lobkowicz Collection in Prague, the Regional Gallery in Liberec, the Rijksmuseum Twenthe in Enschede, the Amsterdam Museum in Amsterdam, the Gemäldegalerie in Berlin and the Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum in Braunschweig will be on display on the second floor of the Sternberg Palace.

Adult visitors may choose from a variety of accompanying programmes. Children visiting the exhibition will enjoy a guidebook specially printed for young visitors, as well as a separate children's gallery.

Main partner of the exhibition is ING Bank Czech Republic. "Culture has always been key to ING. Our aim is to make art and culture accessible to a broad audience; that is why ING sponsors several cultural projects worldwide. Among others, our key partnerships include the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. This exhibition overview of Dutch masters fits perfectly for ING and gives opportunity to participate in the cultural life of the Czech Republic and to celebrate the 20th anniversary of ING Bank on the Czech market." said Jan Bartholomeus, CEO ING Bank Czech Republic.

The National Gallery in Prague houses domestic and international art collections, with over 400 000 objects of art, is the largest and most important art institution in the Czech Republic that cares about the national art treasure. The background of the National Gallery in Prague goes back to 1796. Collecting Dutch paintings has a long tradition on the territory of the Czech Republic and it was primarily the local nobility that built one of the largest and the most compact 17^th century Dutch art collection now in the National Gallery in Prague, represented by over 600 paintings.

ING Bank history in the Czech Republic goes back to 1992, when as one of the first leading international banks ING entered the market and has built a strong position in commercial banking. ING Commercial Banking meets all of the banking needs of corporations and large multinationals, as well as financial institutions by offering a full range of banking products and services. Its customers include a wide range of prominent Czech and international companies.

In 2001, ING Bank introduced its first product to individual clients - the ING Konto savings account, thereby establishing the category of savings accounts on the Czech market. The following year, the company extended its offer to include investments to mutual funds. Since then ING Bank offers one of the broadest range of mutual funds on the Czech market. The goal of ING Bank is to provide its customers with simple, accessible and secure way of managing their savings.

Main partners of the exhibition

National Gallery in Prague, ING Bank

Honorary partners

Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Dutch Kingdom, Embassy of the Netherlands in the Czech Republic

Partners of the exhibition

Amsterdam Museum a Rijksmuseum Twenthe / Enschede, Prague City Hall, The Prague Public Transport Company, Philips

Media partners of the exhibition

O2 Extra

Technology partner

Samsung

Partners

Neternity Group

Media Partners

Rádio Česko, Vltava ČRo 3, Anopress IT, Classic FM, Sanquis, Prager Zeitung

Sternberg Palace

Hradčanské nám. 15
118 00 Prague 1

Transportation

Tram no. 22 to Prague Castle

Admission rates

General: 150 CZK

Discounts:80 CZK

Family:200 CZK

School groups: 20 CZK / per student

A combined ticket includes admission to the Rembrandt & Co. exhibition and the permanent collections housed in the Sternberg and Schwarzenberg Palaces. In the course of the Rembrandt & Co. exhibition, general admission will be reduced from 240 CZK to 150 CZK.

Press release of January 10, 2012