As Sabancı University Sakıp Sabancı Museum (SSM) celebrates its 10th anniversary, it opens the exhibition “Where Darkness Meets Light… Rembrandt and His Contemporaries - The Golden Age of Dutch Art” to the public. The exhibition marks the 400th year of diplomatic relations between Turkey and the Netherlands and features works from the Rijksmuseum as well as one of the world’s leading private collections, which are being displayed for the first time in Turkey. The Turkish and Dutch governments are the diplomatic co-sponsors of the exhibition, which are supported by a number of major Dutch companies operating in Turkey. The main sponsors are Sabancı Holding and ING Bank and Philips is also among the sponsors. The exhibition is being held with contributions from Unilever and Shell and the service sponsors are Grand Hyatt Hotel, the Park Hyatt Istanbul-Maçka Palas Hotel and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines.
Besides Rembrandt, the exhibition presents a total number of 110 works; 73 paintings, 19 drawings and 18 objects by 59 artists including major representatives of Dutch art. Additionally, the exhibition presents the painting entitled “The Love Letter” by Johannes Vermeer, who remained an obscure figure for centuries with his works being attributed to other artists for a long time. Although only 35 works are attributed to Vermeer today, he is universally acknowledged as a major artist of his time. Works by great artists including Frans Hals, Jan Steen and Jacob van Ruisdael are on display in the exhibition, which presents the splendour of the Golden Age of Dutch Art, considered to be one of the most exciting periods in art history.