Original version

BBC World Service Online

In the Studio

Factual: Arts, Culture & the Media

Inside the brains of the world’s most creative people

In the Studio takes us into the minds and processes of leading and emerging figures from across the creative world.

BBC World Service Australasia

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa Schedule

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa

BBC World Service schedule for American satellite radio and the Caribbean

BBC World Service Americas and the Caribbean

BBC World Service

BBC World Service South Asia

BBC World Service News Internet

BBC World Service Europe and the Middle East

BBC World Service West and Central Africa Schedule

BBC World Service West and Central Africa

BBC World Service East Asia

In the Studio: Operation Night Watch

Magazines & Reviews

Operation Night Watch

14/07/2020 GMT

BBC World Service - In the Studio, Operation Night Watch

Uncovering the secrets behind one of the most famous paintings in the world.

This week our guest is a Dutch icon - The Night Watch.

This masterpiece by Rembrandt is nearly 400 years old and sits centre stage at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, where more than 2 million visitors come to see it every year. So when it became clear the painting needed a serious makeover, taking years to complete, the idea of removing it from display was rejected. Instead the museum’s Director, Taco Dibbits, decided to make Operation Night Watch accessible to all, by building a specially-constructed glass chamber for restorers, scientists and conservators to work under the public's watchful eye; both in the museum and online.

Anik See follows Taco and his team during this key phase of Operation Night Watch, diving into state-of-the-art imaging techniques and discovering the masterpiece’s secrets and storied past, to find out why this painting remains so important to us.

Presented by Anik See

Produced by Anik See and Ella-mai Robey for the BBC World Service

Image: Copyright: The Rijksmuseum

Accessibility links

Programme Index

In the Studio

Operation Night Watch

Genres

Formats

Brand

BBC World Service Online

About BBC World Service