Rembrandt (1606-1669), Dutch baroque artist, who ranks as one of the greatest painters on canvas in the history of Western art. His full name was Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn. He possessed a profound understanding of human nature that was matched by a brilliant technique not only in painting on canvas but in drawing and etching and his work made an enormous impact on his contemporaries and influenced the style of many later artists. Perhaps no painter has ever equaled Rembrandt's chiaroscuro effects or his bold impasto.