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Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a
Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...
artist and diplomat from the
Duchy of Brabant The Duchy of Brabant was a State of the Holy Roman Empire established in 1183. It developed from the Landgraviate of Brabant and formed the heart of the historic Low Countries, part of the Burgundian Netherlands from 1430 and of the Habsburg Neth ...
in the
Southern Netherlands The Southern Netherlands, also called the Catholic Netherlands, were the parts of the Low Countries belonging to the Holy Roman Empire which were at first largely controlled by Habsburg Spain (Spanish Netherlands, 1556–1714) and later by the A ...
(modern-day
Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque tradition. Rubens's highly charged compositions reference erudite aspects of classical and Christian history. His unique and immensely popular Baroque style emphasized movement, colour, and sensuality, which followed the immediate, dramatic artistic style promoted in the
Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also called the Catholic Reformation () or the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to the Protestant Reformation. It began with the Council of Trent (1545–1563) a ...
. Rubens was a painter producing altarpieces, portraits, landscapes, and
history painting History painting is a genre in painting defined by its subject matter rather than any artistic style or specific period. History paintings depict a moment in a narrative story, most often (but not exclusively) Greek and Roman mythology and Bible ...
s of mythological and allegorical subjects. He was also a prolific designer of cartoons for the Flemish tapestry workshops and of frontispieces for the publishers in Antwerp. In addition to running a large workshop in
Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
that produced paintings popular with nobility and art collectors throughout Europe, Rubens was a classically educated humanist scholar and diplomat who was
knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...
ed by both
Philip IV of Spain Philip IV ( es, Felipe, pt, Filipe; 8 April 160517 September 1665), also called the Planet King (Spanish: ''Rey Planeta''), was King of Spain from 1621 to his death and (as Philip III) King of Portugal from 1621 to 1640. Philip is remembered f ...
and
Charles I of England Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 27 March 1625 until Execution of Charles I, his execution in 1649. He was born into the House of Stuart as the second son of King James VI of ...
. Rubens was a prolific artist. The catalogue of his works by
Michael Jaffé Andrew Michael Jaffé (3 June 1923 – 13 July 1997) was a British art historian and curator. He was Director of the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, England for 17 years, from 1973 to 1990. Life Born in London, he was educated at Wagner's ...
lists 1,403 pieces, excluding numerous copies made in his workshop. His commissioned works were mostly
history painting History painting is a genre in painting defined by its subject matter rather than any artistic style or specific period. History paintings depict a moment in a narrative story, most often (but not exclusively) Greek and Roman mythology and Bible ...
s, which included religious and mythological subjects, and hunt scenes. He painted portraits, especially of friends, and self-portraits, and in later life painted several landscapes. Rubens designed tapestries and prints, as well as his own house. He also oversaw the
ephemeral Ephemerality (from the Greek word , meaning 'lasting only one day') is the concept of things being transitory, existing only briefly. Academically, the term ephemeral constitutionally describes a diverse assortment of things and experiences, fr ...
decorations of the royal entry into Antwerp by the
Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand of Austria Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand (also known as Don Fernando de Austria, Cardenal-Infante Fernando de España and as Ferdinand von Österreich; May 1609 or 1610 – 9 November 1641) was Governor of the Spanish Netherlands, Cardinal of the Holy Catholic ...
in 1635. He wrote a book with illustrations of the palaces in
Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...
, which was published in 1622 as ''
Palazzi di Genova ''Palazzi di Genova'' is a 1622 book written and illustrated by Peter Paul Rubens, depicting and describing the palaces of Genoa, Italy in 72 plates. A second volume with 67 further plates was added the same year, and they are usually found (and r ...
''. The book was influential in spreading the Genoese palace style in Northern Europe.Giulio Girondi, ''Frans Geffels, Rubens and the Palazzi di Genova'', pp. 183–199. Rubens was an avid art collector and had one of the largest collections of art and books in Antwerp. He was also an art dealer and is known to have sold an important number of art objects to
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, 28 August 1592 – 23 August 1628), was an English courtier, statesman, and patron of the arts. He was a favourite and possibly also a lover of King James I of England. Buckingham remained at the ...
.Joost vander Auwera, Arnout Balis, ''Rubens: A Genius at Work : the Works of Peter Paul Rubens in the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium Reconsidered'', Lannoo Uitgeverij, 2007, p. 33. He was one of the last major artists to make consistent use of wooden panels as a support medium, even for very large works, but he used
canvas Canvas is an extremely durable plain-woven fabric used for making sails, tents, marquees, backpacks, shelters, as a support for oil painting and for other items for which sturdiness is required, as well as in such fashion objects as handbags ...
as well, especially when the work needed to be sent a long distance. For
altarpiece An altarpiece is an artwork such as a painting, sculpture or relief representing a religious subject made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting o ...
s he sometimes painted on
slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...
to reduce reflection problems.


Life


Early life

Rubens was born in
Siegen Siegen () is a city in Germany, in the south Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly sho ...
to
Jan Rubens Jan Rubens (1530–1587) was a Flemish magistrate of Antwerp, best known today as the father of Peter Paul Rubens. Family Rubens was born in Antwerp to an old merchant family.Jan Rubens in the NNBW He was trained as a scholar and travelled to ...
and
Maria Pypelincks Maria Pypelinckx (20 March 1538 – 19 October 1608) was a writer from the Southern Netherlands, best known today as the mother of the painter Peter Paul Rubens. Early life Pypelinckx was born in Kuringen, now a part of Hasselt, as the daughter ...
. His father, a
Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...
, and mother fled Antwerp for
Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...
in 1568, after increased religious turmoil and persecution of
Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
s during the rule of the
Habsburg Netherlands Habsburg Netherlands was the Renaissance period fiefs in the Low Countries held by the Holy Roman Empire's House of Habsburg. The rule began in 1482, when the last House of Valois-Burgundy, Valois-Burgundy ruler of the Netherlands, Mary of Burgu ...
by the Duke of Alba. Rubens was baptised in Cologne at St Peter's Church. Jan Rubens became the legal adviser (and lover) of
Anna of Saxony Anna of Saxony (23 December 1544 – 18 December 1577) was the heiress of Maurice, Elector of Saxony, and Agnes, eldest daughter of Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse. Maurice's only son, Albert, died in infancy. Anna was the second wife of William th ...
, the second wife of William I of Orange, and settled at her court in Siegen in 1570, fathering her daughter Christine who was born in 1571. Following Jan Rubens's imprisonment for the affair, Peter Paul Rubens was born in 1577. The family returned to Cologne the next year. In 1589, two years after his father's death, Rubens moved with his mother Maria Pypelincks to Antwerp, where he was raised as a
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
. Religion figured prominently in much of his work, and Rubens later became one of the leading voices of the Catholic Counter-Reformation style of painting (he had said "My passion comes from the heavens, not from earthly musings").


Apprenticeship

In Antwerp, Rubens received a
Renaissance humanist Renaissance humanism was a revival in the study of classical antiquity, at first in Italy and then spreading across Western Europe in the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries. During the period, the term ''humanist'' ( it, umanista) referred to teache ...
education, studying Latin and classical literature. By fourteen he began his artistic apprenticeship with
Tobias Verhaeght Tobias Verhaecht (1561–1631) was a painter from Antwerp in the Duchy of Brabant who primarily painted landscapes. His style was indebted to the mannerist world landscape developed by artists like Joachim Patinir and Pieter Bruegel the Elder. He ...
. Subsequently, he studied under two of the city's leading painters of the time, the late
Mannerist Mannerism, which may also be known as Late Renaissance, is a style in European art that emerged in the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520, spreading by about 1530 and lasting until about the end of the 16th century in Italy, ...
artists
Adam van Noort Adam van Noort (1561/62 – 1641) was a Southern Netherlands, Flemish Painting, painter and drawing, draughtsman and one of the teachers of Peter Paul Rubens, and the only teacher of Jacob Jordaens. Adam van Noort was mainly known for his hi ...
and
Otto van Veen Otto van Veen, also known by his Latinized name Otto Venius or Octavius Vaenius (1556 – 6 May 1629), was a painter, draughtsman, and humanist active primarily in Antwerp and Brussels in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He is known for r ...
. Much of his earliest training involved copying earlier artists' works, such as
woodcut Woodcut is a relief printing technique in printmaking. An artist carves an image into the surface of a block of wood—typically with gouges—leaving the printing parts level with the surface while removing the non-printing parts. Areas that ...
s by
Hans Holbein the Younger Hans Holbein the Younger ( , ; german: Hans Holbein der Jüngere;  – between 7 October and 29 November 1543) was a Germans, German-Swiss people, Swiss painter and printmaker who worked in a Northern Renaissance style, and is considered o ...
and
Marcantonio Raimondi Marcantonio Raimondi, often called simply Marcantonio (c. 1470/82 – c. 1534), was an Italian engraver, known for being the first important printmaker whose body of work consists largely of prints copying paintings. He is therefore a key figu ...
's
engraving Engraving is the practice of incising a design onto a hard, usually flat surface by cutting grooves into it with a Burin (engraving), burin. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or Glass engraving, glass ...
s after
Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, better known as Raphael (; or ; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. List of works by Raphael, His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of ...
. Rubens completed his education in 1598, at which time he entered the
Guild of St. Luke The Guild of Saint Luke was the most common name for a city guild for painters and other artists in early modern Europe, especially in the Low Countries. They were named in honor of the Four Evangelists, Evangelist Saint Luke, Luke, the patron sa ...
as an independent master.


Italy (1600–1608)

In 1600 Rubens traveled to Italy. He stopped first in
Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400  ...
, where he saw paintings by
Titian Tiziano Vecelli or Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italians, Italian (Republic of Venice, Venetian) painter of the Renaissance, considered the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school (art), ...
,
Veronese Veronese is the Italian word denoting someone or something from Verona, Italy and may refer to: * Veronese Riddle, a popular riddle in the Middle Ages * ''Veronese'' (moth), a moth genus in the family Crambidae * Monte Veronese, an Italian chees ...
, and
Tintoretto Tintoretto ( , , ; born Jacopo Robusti; late September or early October 1518Bernari and de Vecchi 1970, p. 83.31 May 1594) was an Italian painter identified with the Venetian school. His contemporaries both admired and criticized the speed with ...
, before settling in
Mantua Mantua ( ; it, Mantova ; Lombard language, Lombard and la, Mantua) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, province of the same name. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the Italian Capital of Culture ...
at the court of Duke Vincenzo I Gonzaga. The colouring and compositions of
Veronese Veronese is the Italian word denoting someone or something from Verona, Italy and may refer to: * Veronese Riddle, a popular riddle in the Middle Ages * ''Veronese'' (moth), a moth genus in the family Crambidae * Monte Veronese, an Italian chees ...
and Tintoretto had an immediate effect on Rubens's painting, and his later, mature style was profoundly influenced by Titian. With financial support from the Duke, Rubens travelled to
Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...
by way of
Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...
in 1601. There, he studied classical Greek and Roman art and copied works of the Italian masters. The
Hellenistic In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...
sculpture ''
Laocoön and His Sons The statue of ''Laocoön and His Sons'', also called the Laocoön Group ( it, Gruppo del Laocoonte), has been one of the most famous ancient sculptures ever since it was excavated in Rome in 1506 and placed on public display in the Vatican Museums ...
'' was especially influential on him, as was the art of
Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was insp ...
,
Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, better known as Raphael (; or ; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. List of works by Raphael, His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of ...
, and
Leonardo da Vinci Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 14522 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, Drawing, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially res ...
. He was also influenced by the recent, highly naturalistic paintings by
Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi (Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, known as simply Caravaggio (, , ; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of hi ...
. Rubens later made a copy of Caravaggio's ''
Entombment of Christ The burial of Jesus refers to the entombment of the body of Jesus after crucifixion, before the eve of the sabbath described in the New Testament. According to the canonical gospel narratives, he was placed in a tomb by a councillor of the san ...
'' and recommended his patron, the Duke of Mantua, to purchase ''The Death of the Virgin'' (
Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...
). After his return to Antwerp he was instrumental in the acquisition of ''The Madonna of the Rosary'' (
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna The Kunsthistorisches Museum ( "Museum of art history, Art History", often referred to as the "Museum of Fine Arts") is an art museum in Vienna, Austria. Housed in its festive palatial building on the Vienna Ring Road, it is crowned with an ...
) for the St. Paul's Church in Antwerp. During this first stay in Rome, Rubens completed his first altarpiece commission, ''St. Helena with the True Cross'' for the Roman church of
Santa Croce in Gerusalemme The Basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem or Basilica di Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, ( la, Basilica Sanctae Crucis in Hierusalem) is a Catholic Minor basilica and titular church in rione Esquilino, Rome, Italy. It is one of the Seven Pilgrim ...
. Rubens travelled to Spain on a diplomatic mission in 1603, delivering gifts from the Gonzagas to the court of Philip III. While there, he studied the extensive collections of Raphael and Titian that had been collected by Philip II. He also painted an
equestrian portrait of the Duke of Lerma ''Equestrian Portrait of the Duke of Lerma'' is an oil on canvas portrait of Francisco Gómez de Sandoval, 1st Duke of Lerma by Rubens, executed in 1603, now in the Prado in Madrid. References Duke of Lerma Duke of Lerma Duke of Lerma 1603 ...
during his stay (Prado, Madrid) that demonstrates the influence of works like Titian's '' Charles V at Mühlberg'' (1548; Prado, Madrid). This journey marked the first of many during his career that combined art and diplomacy. He returned to Italy in 1604, where he remained for the next four years, first in Mantua and then in
Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...
and Rome. In Genoa, Rubens painted numerous portraits, such as the ''
Marchesa Brigida Spinola-Doria The ''Portrait of Marchesa Brigida Spinola-Doria'' is an oil-on-canvas painting by Flemish artist Sir Peter Paul Rubens, dating to 1606. It is now in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., part of the Samuel H. Kress Collection. It was ...
'' (National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.), and the portrait of Maria di Antonio Serra Pallavicini, in a style that influenced later paintings by
Anthony van Dyck Sir Anthony van Dyck (, many variant spellings; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Brabantian Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Southern Netherlands and Italy. The seventh c ...
,
Joshua Reynolds Sir Joshua Reynolds (16 July 1723 – 23 February 1792) was an English painter, specialising in portraits. John Russell said he was one of the major European painters of the 18th century. He promoted the "Grand Style" in painting which depend ...
and
Thomas Gainsborough Thomas Gainsborough (14 May 1727 (baptised) – 2 August 1788) was an English portrait and landscape painter, draughtsman, and printmaker. Along with his rival Sir Joshua Reynolds, he is considered one of the most important British artists of ...
. He illustrated books, which was published in 1622 as ''
Palazzi di Genova ''Palazzi di Genova'' is a 1622 book written and illustrated by Peter Paul Rubens, depicting and describing the palaces of Genoa, Italy in 72 plates. A second volume with 67 further plates was added the same year, and they are usually found (and r ...
''. From 1606 to 1608, he was mostly in Rome when he received, with the assistance of Cardinal
Jacopo Serra Giacomo Serra (1570–1623) was a Catholic cardinal. Wikipedia:SPS, Life He was a son of the noblewoman Claudia Lomellini and her husband Antonio Maria Serra, deputy to Genoa's Nobile Vecchio Portico and a senator of Florence. He moved to Rome, ...
(the brother of Maria Pallavicini), his most important commission to date for the High Altar of the city's most fashionable new church,
Santa Maria in Vallicella Santa Maria in Vallicella, also called Chiesa Nuova, is a church in Rome, Italy, which today faces onto the main thoroughfare of the Corso Vittorio Emanuele and the corner of Via della Chiesa Nuova. It is the principal church of the Oratorians, ...
also known as the Chiesa Nuova. The subject was to be St. Gregory the Great and important local saints adoring an
icon An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Catholic churches. They are not simply artworks; "an icon is a sacred image used in religious devotion". The most ...
of the Virgin and Child. The first version, a single canvas (now at the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Grenoble), was immediately replaced by a second version on three slate panels that permits the actual miraculous holy image of the "Santa Maria in Vallicella" to be revealed on important feast days by a removable copper cover, also painted by the artist. Rubens's experiences in Italy continued to influence his work. He continued to write many of his letters and correspondences in Italian, signed his name as "Pietro Paolo Rubens", and spoke longingly of returning to the peninsula—a hope that never materialized.


Antwerp (1609–1621)

Upon hearing of his mother's illness in 1608, Rubens planned his departure from Italy for Antwerp. However, she died before he arrived home. His return coincided with a period of renewed prosperity in the city with the signing of the Treaty of Antwerp in April 1609, which initiated the
Twelve Years' Truce The Twelve Years' Truce was a ceasefire during the Eighty Years' War between Spain and the Dutch Republic, agreed in Antwerp on 9 April 1609 and ended on 9 April 1621. While European powers like France began treating the Republic as a sovereign n ...
. In September 1609 Rubens was appointed as court painter by
Albert VII, Archduke of Austria Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert (supermarket), a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street market in The Gambia * Albert Productions, a record label * Albert ...
, and
Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia of Spain Isabella Clara Eugenia ( es, link=no, Isabel Clara Eugenia; 12 August 1566 – 1 December 1633), sometimes referred to as Clara Isabella Eugenia, was sovereign of the Spanish Netherlands in the Low Countries and the north of modern France with ...
, sovereigns of the
Low Countries The term Low Countries, also known as the Low Lands ( nl, de Lage Landen, french: les Pays-Bas, lb, déi Niddereg Lännereien) and historically called the Netherlands ( nl, de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in N ...
. He received special permission to base his studio in Antwerp instead of at their court in
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
, and to also work for other clients. He remained close to the Archduchess Isabella until her death in 1633, and was called upon not only as a painter but also as an ambassador and diplomat. Rubens further cemented his ties to the city when, on 3 October 1609, he married
Isabella Brant Isabella Brant (or Brandt; 1591 – 15 July 1626) was the first wife of the Flemish painter Peter Paul Rubens, who painted several portraits of her. Family She was the eldest daughter of Jan Brant, an important city official in Antwerp, and ...
, the daughter of a leading Antwerp citizen and humanist, Jan Brant. In 1610 Rubens moved into a new house and studio that he designed. Now the
Rubenshuis The Rubenshuis () is the former home and workshop of Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640) in Antwerp. Purchased in 1610, Rubens had the Flemish townhouse renovated and extended on the basis of designs by Rubens himself. After the renovations, the ho ...
Museum, the Italian-influenced villa in the centre of Antwerp accommodated his workshop, where he and his apprentices made most of the paintings, and his personal art collection and library, both among the most extensive in Antwerp. During this time he built up a studio with numerous students and assistants. His most famous pupil was the young
Anthony van Dyck Sir Anthony van Dyck (, many variant spellings; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Brabantian Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Southern Netherlands and Italy. The seventh c ...
, who soon became the leading Flemish portraitist and collaborated frequently with Rubens. He also often collaborated with the many specialists active in the city, including the animal painter
Frans Snyders Frans Snyders or Frans Snijders (11 November 1579, Antwerp – 19 August 1657, Antwerp) was a Flemish painter of animals, hunting scenes, market scenes and still lifes. He was one of the earliest specialist animaliers and he is credited with ...
, who contributed the eagle to ''
Prometheus Bound ''Prometheus Bound'' ( grc, Προμηθεὺς Δεσμώτης, ''Promētheús Desmṓtēs'') is an Ancient Greek tragedy traditionally attributed to Aeschylus and thought to have been composed sometime between 479 BC and the terminus ante ...
'' (c. 1611–12, completed by 1618), and his good friend the flower-painter
Jan Brueghel the Elder Jan Brueghel (also Bruegel or Breughel) the Elder (, ; ; 1568 – 13 January 1625) was a Flemish painter and draughtsman. He was the son of the eminent Flemish Renaissance painter Pieter Bruegel the Elder. A close friend and frequent collaborato ...
. Another house was built by Rubens to the north of Antwerp in the
polder A polder () is a low-lying tract of land that forms an artificial hydrological entity, enclosed by embankments known as dikes. The three types of polder are: # Land reclaimed from a body of water, such as a lake or the seabed # Flood plains s ...
village of
Doel Doel is a subdivision of the municipality of Beveren in the Flemish province of East Flanders in Belgium. It is located near the river the Scheldt, in a polder of the Waasland. Since 1965, there have been plans to extend the Port of Antwerp into ...
, "Hooghuis" (1613/1643), perhaps as an investment. The "High House" was built next to the village church. Altarpieces such as ''
The Raising of the Cross The raising of the Cross or elevation of the Cross has been a distinct subject in the Life of Christ in art depicting the start of the Crucifixion of Jesus.
'' (1610) and '' The Descent from the Cross'' (1611–1614) for the Cathedral of Our Lady were particularly important in establishing Rubens as Flanders' leading painter shortly after his return. ''The Raising of the Cross'', for example, demonstrates the artist's synthesis of Tintoretto's ''Crucifixion'' for the
Scuola Grande di San Rocco The Scuola Grande di San Rocco is a building in Venice, northern Italy. It is noted for its collection of paintings by Tintoretto and generally agreed to include some of his finest work. History The building is the seat of a confraternity establ ...
in Venice,
Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was insp ...
's dynamic figures, and Rubens's own personal style. This painting has been held as a prime example of Baroque religious art. Rubens used the production of
prints In molecular biology, the PRINTS database is a collection of so-called "fingerprints": it provides both a detailed annotation resource for protein families, and a diagnostic tool for newly determined sequences. A fingerprint is a group of conserve ...
and book title-pages, especially for his friend
Balthasar Moretus Balthasar Moretus or Balthasar I Moretus (23 July 1574 – 6 July 1641) was a Flemish printer and head of the Plantin Press, Officina Plantiniana, the printing company established by his grandfather Christophe Plantin in Antwerp in 1555. He was the ...
, the owner of the large Plantin-Moretus publishing house, to extend his fame throughout Europe during this part of his career. In 1618, Rubens embarked upon a printmaking enterprise by soliciting an unusual triple privilege (an early form of
copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, education ...
) to protect his designs in France, the Southern Netherlands, and United Provinces. He enlisted
Lucas Vorsterman Lucas Vorsterman (1595–1675) was a Baroque engraver. He worked with the artists Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck, as well as for patrons such as Thomas Howard, 21st Earl of Arundel and Charles I of England. Biography Vorsterman wa ...
to engrave a number of his notable religious and mythological paintings, to which Rubens appended personal and professional dedications to noteworthy individuals in the Southern Netherlands, United Provinces, England, France, and Spain. With the exception of a few
etching Etching is traditionally the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio (incised) in the metal. In modern manufacturing, other chemicals may be used on other types ...
s, Rubens left the
printmaking Printmaking is the process of creating artworks by printing, normally on paper, but also on fabric, wood, metal, and other surfaces. "Traditional printmaking" normally covers only the process of creating prints using a hand processed techniq ...
to specialists, who included Lucas Vorsterman,
Paulus Pontius Paulus Pontius (May 1603 in Antwerp – 16 January 1658 in Antwerp) was a Flemish engraver and painter. He was one of the leading engravers connected with the workshop of Peter Paul Rubens. After Rubens' death, Pontus worked with other leadin ...
and
Willem Panneels Willem Panneels (c.1600 – c.1634) was a Flemish engraver who was active in the first half of the 17th century. He is mainly known for the copies he made of drawings from the personal study of Rubens. Biography Very little is known about his ...
. He recruited a number of engravers trained by
Christoffel Jegher Christoffel Jegher (1596, Antwerp – 1652, Antwerp), was a Flemish Baroque engraver. Biography According to the RKD he was the father of the engraver Jan Christoffel. He became a master in the Antwerp Guild of St. Luke in 1628.
, whom he carefully schooled in the more vigorous style he wanted. Rubens also designed the last significant
woodcut Woodcut is a relief printing technique in printmaking. An artist carves an image into the surface of a block of wood—typically with gouges—leaving the printing parts level with the surface while removing the non-printing parts. Areas that ...
s before the 19th-century revival in the technique.


Marie de' Medici Cycle and diplomatic missions (1621–1630)

In 1621, the Queen Mother of France,
Marie de' Medici Marie de' Medici (french: link=no, Marie de Médicis, it, link=no, Maria de' Medici; 26 April 1575 – 3 July 1642) was Queen of France and Navarre as the second wife of King Henry IV of France of the House of Bourbon, and Regent of the Kingdom ...
, commissioned Rubens to paint two large allegorical cycles celebrating her life and the life of her late husband, Henry IV, for the
Luxembourg Palace The Luxembourg Palace (french: Palais du Luxembourg, ) is at 15 Rue de Vaugirard in the 6th arrondissement of Paris. It was originally built (1615–1645) to the designs of the French architect Salomon de Brosse to be the royal residence of the ...
in Paris. The
Marie de' Medici cycle The Marie de' Medici Cycle is a series of twenty-four paintings by Peter Paul Rubens commissioned by Marie de' Medici, widow of Henry IV of France, for the Luxembourg Palace in Paris. Rubens received the commission in the autumn of 1621. After neg ...
(now in the Louvre) was installed in 1625, and although he began work on the second series it was never completed. Marie was exiled from France in 1630 by her son,
Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown ...
, and died in 1642 in the same house in Cologne where Rubens had lived as a child. After the end of the Twelve Years' Truce in 1621, the Spanish
Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
rulers entrusted Rubens with a number of diplomatic missions.Belkin (1998): 199–228. While in Paris in 1622 to discuss the Marie de' Medici cycle, Rubens engaged in clandestine information gathering activities, which at the time was an important task of diplomats. He relied on his friendship with
Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc (1 December 1580 – 24 June 1637), often known simply as Peiresc, or by the Latin form of his name, Peirescius, was a French astronomer, antiquary and savant, who maintained a wide correspondence with scientis ...
to get information on political developments in France. Between 1627 and 1630, Rubens's diplomatic career was particularly active, and he moved between the courts of Spain and England in an attempt to bring peace between the Spanish Netherlands and the United Provinces. He also made several trips to the northern Netherlands as both an artist and a diplomat. At the courts he sometimes encountered the attitude that courtiers should not use their hands in any art or trade, but he was also received as a gentleman by many. Rubens was raised by Philip IV of Spain to the nobility in 1624 and knighted by Charles I of England in 1630. Philip IV confirmed Rubens's status as a knight a few months later. Rubens was awarded an honorary
Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...
degree from
Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
in 1629. Rubens was in Madrid for eight months in 1628–1629. In addition to diplomatic negotiations, he executed several important works for Philip IV and private patrons. He also began a renewed study of Titian's paintings, copying numerous works including the Madrid ''Fall of Man'' (1628–29). During this stay, he befriended the court painter
Diego Velázquez Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez (baptized June 6, 1599August 6, 1660) was a Spanish painter, the leading artist in the court of King Philip IV of Spain and Portugal, and of the Spanish Golden Age. He was an individualistic artist of th ...
and the two planned to travel to Italy together the following year. Rubens, however, returned to Antwerp and Velázquez made the journey without him. His stay in Antwerp was brief, and he soon travelled on to London where he remained until April 1630. An important work from this period is the ''Allegory of Peace and War'' (1629;
National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director o ...
, London). It illustrates the artist's lively concern for peace, and was given to Charles I as a gift. While Rubens's international reputation with collectors and nobility abroad continued to grow during this decade, he and his workshop also continued to paint monumental paintings for local patrons in Antwerp. The ''
Assumption of the Virgin Mary The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it in 1950 in his apostolic constitution ''Munificentissimus Deus'' as follows: We proclaim and define it to be a dogma revealed by Go ...
'' (1625–6) for the Cathedral of Antwerp is one prominent example.


Last decade (1630–1640)

Rubens's last decade was spent in and around Antwerp. Major works for foreign patrons still occupied him, such as the ceiling paintings for the
Banqueting House In English architecture, mainly from the Tudor period onwards, a banqueting house is a separate pavilion-like building reached through the gardens from the main residence, whose use is purely for entertaining, especially eating. Or it may be buil ...
at
Inigo Jones Inigo Jones (; 15 July 1573 – 21 June 1652) was the first significant architect in England and Wales in the early modern period, and the first to employ Vitruvian rules of proportion and symmetry in his buildings. As the most notable archit ...
's
Palace of Whitehall The Palace of Whitehall (also spelt White Hall) at Westminster was the main residence of the English monarchs from 1530 until 1698, when most of its structures, except notably Inigo Jones's Banqueting House of 1622, were destroyed by fire. H ...
, but he also explored more personal artistic directions. In 1630, four years after the death of his first wife Isabella, the 53-year-old painter married his first wife's niece, the 16-year-old Hélène Fourment. Hélène inspired the voluptuous figures in many of his paintings from the 1630s, including '' The Feast of Venus'' (Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna), '' The Three Graces'' and '' The Judgement of Paris'' (both Prado, Madrid). In the latter painting, which was made for the Spanish court, the artist's young wife was recognized by viewers in the figure of
Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never fa ...
. In an intimate portrait of her, ''Hélène Fourment in a Fur Wrap'', also known as ''
Het Pelsken ''The Fur'' or ''The Pelt'' (Dutch: ''Het Pelsken''), also called ''The Little Fur'' (German: ''Das Pelzchen''; French: ''La Petite Pelisse''), or ''Helena Fourment in a Fur Robe'', is a portrait by Peter Paul Rubens of his second wife Helena Fo ...
'', Rubens's wife is even partially modelled after classical sculptures of the
Venus Pudica Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury (planet), Mercury) appears in Ear ...
, such as the
Medici Venus The Venus de' Medici or Medici Venus is a tall Hellenistic marble sculpture depicting the Greek goddess of love Aphrodite. It is a 1st-century BC marble copy, perhaps made in Athens, of a bronze original Greek sculpture, following the type of th ...
. In 1635, Rubens bought an estate outside Antwerp, the Steen, where he spent much of his time. Landscapes, such as his ''
Château de Steen with Hunter ''A View of Het Steen in the Early Morning'', also called ''Château de Steen with Hunter'' or simply ''Het Steen'', is a landscape painting by Flemish artist Peter Paul Rubens, dating to around 1636. It measures 131.2 cm by 229.2 cm and ...
'' (National Gallery, London) and '' Farmers Returning from the Fields'' (Pitti Gallery, Florence), reflect the more personal nature of many of his later works. He also drew upon the Netherlandish traditions of
Pieter Bruegel the Elder Pieter Bruegel (also Brueghel or Breughel) the Elder (, ; ; – 9 September 1569) was the most significant artist of Dutch and Flemish Renaissance painting, a painter and printmaker, known for his landscapes and peasant scenes (so-called genr ...
for inspiration in later works like '' Flemish Kermis'' (c. 1630; Louvre, Paris).


Death

Rubens died from heart failure as a result of his chronic
gout Gout ( ) is a form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by recurrent attacks of a red, tender, hot and swollen joint, caused by deposition of monosodium urate monohydrate crystals. Pain typically comes on rapidly, reaching maximal intensit ...
on 30 May 1640. He was interred in the Saint James' Church in Antwerp. A burial chapel for the artist and his family was built in the church. Construction on the chapel started in 1642 and was completed in 1650 when Cornelis van Mildert (the son of Rubens's friend, the sculptor
Johannes van Mildert Johannes van Mildert or Hans van Mildert (alternative names: Joannes van Mildert, Johannes Van Milder, and nickname ''den Duyts''; 1588 in Königsberg – 1638 in Antwerp) was a Flemish sculptor, who is best known for his baroque sculptures fou ...
) delivered the altarstone. The chapel is a marble altar portico with two columns framing the altarpiece of the ''Virgin and child with saints'' painted by Rubens himself. The painting expresses the basic tenets of the Counter Reformation through the figures of the Virgin and saints. In the upper niche of the retable is a marble statue depicting the Virgin as the Mater Dolorosa whose heart is pierced by a sword, which was likely sculpted by
Lucas Faydherbe Lucas Faydherbe (also spelled Lucas Faijdherbe; he signed as Lucas Fayd'herbe) (Mechelen, 19 January 1617 – Mechelen, 31 December 1697)Helena Fourment Helena Fourment or Hélène Fourment (11 April 1614 – 15 July 1673) was the second wife of Baroque painter Peter Paul Rubens. She was the subject of a few portraits by Rubens, and also modeled for other religious and mythological paintings. Fam ...
and two of her children (one of which fathered by Rubens) were later also laid to rest in the chapel. Over the coming centuries about 80 descendants from the Rubens family were interred in the chapel. At the request of
canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western can ...
van Parijs, Rubens's epitaph, written in Latin by his friend
Gaspar Gevartius John Gaspar Gevartius or Jan Caspar Gevaerts (1593-1666) was the jurisconsult of Antwerp and in his lifetime a famous philologist. He was a personal friend of Peter Paul Rubens. Life Gaspar was born in Turnhout on 6 August 1593, the son of Joha ...
, was chiselled on the chapel floor. In the tradition of the Renaissance, Rubens is compared in the epitaph to
Apelles Apelles of Kos (; grc-gre, Ἀπελλῆς; fl. 4th century BC) was a renowned painter of ancient Greece. Pliny the Elder, to whom much of modern scholars' knowledge of this artist is owed (''Naturalis Historia'' 35.36.79–97 and ''passim'' ...
, the most famous painter of Greek Antiquity.


Work


Feminist interpretation

His biblical and mythological nudes are especially well-known. Painted in the Baroque tradition of depicting women as soft-bodied, passive, and to the modern eye highly sexualized beings, his nudes emphasize the concepts of fertility, desire, physical beauty, temptation, and virtue. Skillfully rendered, these paintings of nude women are thought by feminists to have been created to sexually appeal to his largely male audience of patrons, although the female nude as an example of beauty has been a traditional motif in European art for centuries. Additionally, Rubens was quite fond of painting full-figured women, giving rise to terms like 'Rubensian' or 'Rubenesque' (sometimes 'Rubensesque'). His large-scale cycle representing Marie de Medicis focuses on several classic female archetypes like the virgin, consort, wife, widow, and diplomatic regent. The inclusion of this iconography in his female portraits, along with his art depicting noblewomen of the day, serve to elevate his female portrait sitters to the status and importance of his male portrait sitters. Rubens's depiction of males is equally stylized, replete with meaning, and quite the opposite of his female subjects. His male nudes represent highly athletic and large mythical or biblical men. Unlike his female nudes, most of his male nudes are depicted partially nude, with sashes, armour, or shadows shielding them from being completely unclothed. These men are twisting, reaching, bending, and grasping: all of which portrays his male subjects engaged in a great deal of physical, sometimes aggressive, action. The concepts Rubens artistically represents illustrate the male as powerful, capable, forceful and compelling. The allegorical and symbolic subjects he painted reference the classic masculine tropes of athleticism, high achievement, valour in war, and civil authority. Male archetypes readily found in Rubens's paintings include the hero, husband, father, civic leader, king, and the battle weary. Rubens was a great admirer of Leonardo da Vinci's work. Using an engraving done 50 years after Leonardo started his project on the Battle of Anghiari, Rubens did a masterly drawing of the Battle which is now in the Louvre in Paris. "The idea that an ancient copy of a lost artwork can be as important as the original is familiar to scholars," says Salvatore Settis, archaeologist and art historian.


Workshop

Paintings from Rubens's workshop can be divided into three categories: those he painted by himself, those he painted in part (mainly hands and faces), and copies supervised from his drawings or
oil sketch An oil sketch or oil study is an artwork made primarily in oil paint in preparation for a larger, finished work. Originally these were created as preparatory studies or modelli, especially so as to gain approval for the design of a larger commissi ...
es. He had, as was usual at the time, a large workshop with many apprentices and students. It has not always been possible to identify who were Rubens's pupils and assistants since as a court painter Rubens was not required to register his pupils with the Antwerp
Guild of Saint Luke The Guild of Saint Luke was the most common name for a city guild for painters and other artists in early modern Europe, especially in the Low Countries. They were named in honor of the Evangelist Luke, the patron saint of artists, who was ide ...
. About 20 pupils or assistants of Rubens have been identified, with various levels of evidence to include them as such. It is also not clear from surviving records whether a particular person was a pupil or assistant in Rubens's workshop or was an artist who was an independent master collaborating on specific works with Rubens. The unknown Jacob Moerman was registered as his pupil while
Willem Panneels Willem Panneels (c.1600 – c.1634) was a Flemish engraver who was active in the first half of the 17th century. He is mainly known for the copies he made of drawings from the personal study of Rubens. Biography Very little is known about his ...
and
Justus van Egmont Justus van Egmont or Joost van Egmont (1601 – 8 January 1674) was a painter and a tapestry designer during the 17th century.Anthony van Dyck Sir Anthony van Dyck (, many variant spellings; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Brabantian Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Southern Netherlands and Italy. The seventh c ...
worked in Rubens's workshop after training with
Hendrick van Balen Hendrick van Balen or Hendrick van Balen I (c. 1573–1575 in Antwerp – 17 July 1632 in Antwerp) was a Flemish Baroque painter and stained glass designer. Hendrick van Balen specialised in small cabinet pictures often painted on a copper ...
in Antwerp. Other artists linked to the Rubens's workshop as pupils, assistants or collaborators are
Abraham van Diepenbeeck Abraham van Diepenbeeck (9 May 1596 (baptised) – between May and September 1675) was Dutch painter of the Flemish School. Biography Van Diepenbeeck was baptised in 's-Hertogenbosch. After having received a classical education, he became ...
,
Lucas Faydherbe Lucas Faydherbe (also spelled Lucas Faijdherbe; he signed as Lucas Fayd'herbe) (Mechelen, 19 January 1617 – Mechelen, 31 December 1697)Lucas Franchoys the Younger Lucas Franchoys the Younger or Lucas Franchoys IIalternative spellings of name: Lucas Franchois, Lucas François, Louis Franchoys (28 June 1616 in Mechelen – 3 April 1681 in Mechelen) was a Flemish Baroque painter from Mechelen, who painted nu ...
,
Nicolaas van der Horst Nicolaas van der Horst or Nicolaus van der Horst (Antwerp, circa 1587-1598 – Brussels, 1646) was a Flemish people, Flemish painter, draughtsman and tapestry designer.
,
Frans Luycx Frans Luycx or Frans Luyckx (before 17 April 1604 – 1 May 1668) was a Flemish painter who became the leading portrait painter at the imperial court of Emperor Ferdinand III in Vienna. He is best known for his portraits of the Emperor's family ...
,
Peter van Mol Pieter van Mol or Peter van Mol (17 November 1599 in Antwerp – 8 April 1650 in Paris) was a Flemish painter known for his history paintings of religious subject matter, and to a lesser extent for his allegorical compositions, genre scenes and p ...
,
Deodat del Monte Deodat del Monte, Deodat van der Mont or Deodatus Delmont (baptized 24 September 1582, in Sint-Truiden – 24 November 1644, in Antwerp) was a Baroque painter, architect, engineer, astronomer, and art dealer who was part of the inner circle of Pe ...
,
Cornelis Schut Cornelis Schut (13 May 1597 – 29 April 1655) was a Flemish painter, draughtsman, engraver and tapestry designer who specialized in religious and mythological scenes. Presumed to have trained under Rubens, he treated Counter-Reformation s ...
,
Erasmus Quellinus the Younger Erasmus Quellinus the Younger or Erasmus Quellinus II (1607–1678) was a Flemish painter, engraver, draughtsman and tapestry designer who worked in various genres including history, portrait, allegorical, battle and animal paintings. He was a ...
,
Pieter Soutman Pieter Claesz Soutman (1593-1601 – 16 August 1657)
,
David Teniers the Elder David Teniers the Elder (158229 July 1649), Flemish painter, was born at Antwerp. Biography Having received his first training in the painter's art from his brother Juliaen, he studied under Rubens in Antwerp, and subsequently under Elshei ...
,
Frans Wouters Frans Wouters (1612–1659) was a Flemish Baroque painter who translated the monumental Baroque style of Peter Paul Rubens into the small context of cabinet paintings. He was a court painter to the Roman Emperor and the Prince of Wales and ...
,
Jan Thomas van Ieperen Jan Thomas or Jan Thomas van Ieperen (5 February 1617 – 6 September 1673) was a Flemish Baroque painter, draughtsman and printmaker. He was first active in Antwerp where he worked in the workshop of Rubens. He later became court painter ...
,
Theodoor van Thulden Theodoor van Thulden (1606–12 July 1669) was a painter, draughtsman and engraver from 's-Hertogenbosch. He is mainly known for his altarpieces, mythological subjects, allegorical works and portraits. He was active in Antwerp, where he had tra ...
and
Victor Wolfvoet (II) Victor Wolfvoet (II) or Victor Wolfvoet the Younger (1612 – 1652), was a Flemish art dealer and painter of history and allegorical paintings. His artistic output was heavily influenced by Peter Paul Rubens.still-life A still life (plural: still lifes) is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which are either natural (food, flowers, dead animals, plants, rocks, shells, etc.) or man-made (drinking glasses, boo ...
s in large compositions to specialists such as animal painters
Frans Snyders Frans Snyders or Frans Snijders (11 November 1579, Antwerp – 19 August 1657, Antwerp) was a Flemish painter of animals, hunting scenes, market scenes and still lifes. He was one of the earliest specialist animaliers and he is credited with ...
and
Paul de Vos Paul de Vos (1591/92, or 1595 in Hulst – 30 June 1678 in Antwerp) was a Flemish Baroque painter who specialized in mainly in compositions of animals, hunting scenes and still lifes. He worked for an elite clientele and was a regular collaborato ...
, or other artists such as
Jacob Jordaens Jacob (Jacques) Jordaens (19 May 1593 – 18 October 1678) was a Flemish painter, draughtsman and tapestry designer known for his history paintings, genre scenes and portraits. After Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck, he was the leading Fle ...
. One of his most frequent collaborators was
Jan Brueghel the Younger Jan Brueghel (also Bruegel or Breughel) the Younger (, ; ; 13 September 1601 – 1 September 1678) was a Flemish Baroque painter. He was the son of Jan Brueghel the Elder, and grandson of Pieter Bruegel the Elder, both prominent painters who c ...
.


Art market

At a
Sotheby's Sotheby's () is a British-founded American multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, and ...
auction on 10 July 2002, Rubens's painting '' Massacre of the Innocents'', rediscovered not long before, sold for £49.5 million (US$76.2 million) to
Lord Thomson Christopher Birdwood Thomson, 1st Baron Thomson, (13 April 1875 – 5 October 1930) was a British Army officer who went on to serve as a Labour minister and peer. He served as Secretary of State for Air under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and betw ...
. At the end of 2013 this remained the record auction price for an
Old Master In art history, "Old Master" (or "old master")Old Masters De ...
painting. At a
Christie's Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, at Rockefeller Center in New York City and at Alexandra House in Hong Kong. It is ...
auction in 2012, ''
Portrait of a Commander ''Portrait of a Commander'' or ''A Commander Being Dressed for Battle'' is a portrait of an unknown man in plate armour, by Peter Paul Rubens. In July 2010 it was sold for £9 million by Christie's after Sotheby's turned it down, suspecting its ...
'' sold for £9.1 million (US$13.5 million) despite a dispute over the authenticity so that
Sotheby's Sotheby's () is a British-founded American multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, and ...
refused to auction it as a Rubens.


Selected exhibitions

* 1936 ''Rubens and His Times'', Paris. * 1997 ''The Century of Rubens in French Collections'', Paris. * 2004 ''Rubens'', Palais de Beaux-Arts, Lille. * 2005 ''Peter Paul Rubens: The Drawings'', Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. * 2015 ''Rubens and His Legacy'', The Royal Academy, London. * 2017 ''Rubens: The Power of Transformation'', Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna. * 2019 ''Early Rubens'', Art Gallery of Ontario Toronto, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.


Lost works

Lost works by Rubens include: * The ''Crucifixion'', painted for the Church of
Santa Croce in Gerusalemme The Basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem or Basilica di Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, ( la, Basilica Sanctae Crucis in Hierusalem) is a Catholic Minor basilica and titular church in rione Esquilino, Rome, Italy. It is one of the Seven Pilgrim ...
, Rome, was imported to England in 1811. It was auctioned in 1812 and again in 1820 and 1821 but was lost at sea sometime after 1821. *''Equestrian Portrait of the Archduke Albert'' *''Susannah and the Elders'' is now known only from engraving from 1620 by Lucas Vosterman. *''Satyr, Nymph, Putti and Leopards'' is now known only from engraving. *''Judith Beheading Holofernes'' c. 1609 known only through the 1610 engraving by
Cornelis Galle the Elder Cornelis Galle the Elder (1576 – 29 March 1650), a younger son of Philip Galle, was born at Antwerp in 1576, and was taught engraving by his father. He followed the example of his brother Theodoor in visiting Rome, where he resided for several ...
. * Works destroyed in the
bombardment of Brussels The bombardment of Brussels by troops of Louis XIV of France on August 13, 14 and 15, 1695, and the resulting fire were together the most destructive event in the entire history of Brussels. Brussels was mostly untouched by most other confli ...
included: **''Madonna of the Rosary'' painted for the Royal Chapel of the Dominican Church **''Virgin Adorned with Flowers by Saint Anne'', 1610 painted for the Church of the Carmelite Friars **''Saint Job Triptych'', 1613, painted for Saint Nicholas Church **''Cambyses Appointing Otanes Judge'', ''Judgment of Solomon'', and ''Last Judgment'', all for the Magistrates' Hall * In the Coudenberg Palace fire there were several works by Rubens destroyed, like ''Nativity'' (1731), ''Adoration of the Magi'' and ''Pentecost''. * The paintings ''Neptune and Amphitrite'', ''Vision of Saint Hubert'' and ''Diana and Nymphs Surprised by Satyrs'' was destroyed in the Friedrichshain flak tower fire in 1945. * The painting ''The Abduction of Proserpine'' was destroyed in the fire at
Blenheim Palace Blenheim Palace (pronounced ) is a country house in Woodstock, Oxfordshire, England. It is the seat of the Dukes of Marlborough and the only non-royal, non- episcopal country house in England to hold the title of palace. The palace, on ...
, Oxfordshire, 5 February 1861. * The painting ''Crucifixion with Mary, St. John, Magdalen'', 1643 was destroyed in the
English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...
by Parliamentarians in the Queen's Chapel, Somerset House, London, 1643 * The painting ''Equestrian Portrait of Philip IV of Spain'' was destroyed in the fire at Royal Alcázar of Madrid fire in 1734. A copy is in the Uffizi Gallery. *''The Continence of Scipio'' was destroyed in a fire in the Western Exchange, Old Bond Street, London, March 1836 * The painting ''The Lion Hunt'' was removed by Napoleon's agents from Schloss Schleissheim, near Munich, 1800 and was destroyed later in a fire at the
Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux The Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux is the fine arts museum of the city of Bordeaux, France. The museum is housed in a dependency of the Palais Rohan in central Bordeaux. Its collections include paintings, sculptures and drawings from the 15t ...
. * An alleged Rubens painting ''Portrait of a Girl'' reported to have been in the collection of
Alexander Dumas Alexandre Dumas (, ; ; born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie (), 24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas père (where '' '' is French for 'father', to distinguish him from his son Alexandre Dumas fils), was a French writer. ...
was reported lost in a fire. * The painting ''Equestrian Portrait of the Duke of Buckingham'' (1625) and the ceiling painting ''The Duke of Buckingham Triumphing over Envy and Anger'' (circa 1625), both later owned by the Earl of Jersey at
Osterley Park Osterley Park and House is a Georgian country estate in west London, that straddles the London boroughs of Ealing and Hounslow. Originally dating from the 1570s, the estate contains a number of Grade I and II listed buildings, with the park l ...
, were destroyed in a fire at the Le Gallais depository in St Helier, Jersey, on 30 September 1949. *''Portrait of Philip IV of Spain'' from 1628 was destroyed in the incendiary attack at the
Kunsthaus Zürich The Kunsthaus Zürich is in terms of area the biggest art museum of Switzerland and houses one of the most important art collections in Switzerland, assembled over the years by the local art association called '. The collection spans from the Medi ...
in 1985. *'' Portrait of George Villiers'', c. 1625. This painting that had been deemed lost for nearly 400 years was rediscovered in 2017 in
Pollok House Pollok House, formerly the family seat of the Stirling-Maxwell family, is located at Pollok Country Park in Glasgow, Scotland (which also houses the Burrell Collection). Overview The house, built in 1752 and originally thought to be designed b ...
,
Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
, Scotland. Conservation treatment carried out by
Simon Rollo Gillespie Simon Rollo Gillespie (born 26 May 1955) is a British conservator-restorer of fine art, and an art historian. He is known particularly for his work with Early British and Tudor portraits, although his practice extends across all periods from ear ...
helped to demonstrate that the work was not a later copy by a lesser artist but was the original by the hand of the master himself.


Works

File:Retrato ecuestre del duque de Lerma (Rubens).jpg, ''Equestrian portrait of the Duke of Lerma'', 1603, Prado Museum File:Peter Paul Rubens - The Judgement of Paris, c.1606 (Museo del Prado).jpg, ''The Judgement of Paris'', c. 1606 Museo del Prado File:0 Portrait d'une jeune femme avec un rosaire - P.P. Rubens - Musée Thyssen-Bornemisza (2).JPG, ''Portrait of a Young Woman with a Rosary'', 1609–10, oil on wood,
Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum The Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum (in Spanish, the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza (), named after its founder), or simply the Thyssen, is an art museum in Madrid, Spain, located near the Prado Museum on one of the city's main boulevards. I ...
File:Rubens Venus at a Mirror c1615.jpg, ''
Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never fa ...
at the Mirror'', 1613–14 File:Peter Paul Rubens - Diana Presentig the Catch to Pan - WGA20291.jpg, ''Diana Returning from Hunt'', 1615, oil on canvas, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister File:07leucip.jpg, ''
The Rape of the Daughters of Leucippus ''The Rape of the Daughters of Leucippus'' is a 1618 painting by Peter Paul Rubens and Jan Wildens. It is displayed at the Alte Pinakothek in Munich. History The painting was bought in Antwerp in 1716 by Johann Wilhelm, Elector Palatine. Initial ...
'', c. 1617, oil on canvas,
Alte Pinakothek The Alte Pinakothek (, ''Old Pinakothek'') is an art museum located in the Kunstareal area in Munich, Germany. It is one of the oldest galleries in the world and houses a significant collection of Old Master paintings. The name Alte (Old) Pinak ...
File:Marchesa Brigida Spinola-Doria.jpg, ''
Portrait of Marchesa Brigida Spinola-Doria The ''Portrait of Marchesa Brigida Spinola-Doria'' is an oil-on-canvas painting by Flemish artist Sir Peter Paul Rubens, dating to 1606. It is now in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., part of the Samuel H. Kress Collection. It was ...
'', 1606 File:Pieter Paul Rubens - Portrait of King Philip IV (Hermitage).jpg, ''Portrait of King Philip IV of Spain'', c. 1628–29 File:Peter Paul Rubens 186.jpg, ''Portrait of Elisabeth of France''. 1628, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna File:Peter Paul Rubens - Portrait of Ambrogio Spinola - WGA20376.jpg, ''Portrait of Ambrogio Spinola'', c. 1627, National Gallery in Prague File:Peter Paul Rubens - Portrait of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham GL GM PC 49.jpg, '' Portrait of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham'', c. 1617–1628,
Pollok House Pollok House, formerly the family seat of the Stirling-Maxwell family, is located at Pollok Country Park in Glasgow, Scotland (which also houses the Burrell Collection). Overview The house, built in 1752 and originally thought to be designed b ...
File:'Equestrian Portrait of the George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham'.jpg, Sketch for ''Equestrian Portrait of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham'', 1625, Kimbell Art Museum File:Rubens Władysław Vasa.jpg, ''Portrait of King
Władysław IV Vasa Władysław IV Vasa; lt, Vladislovas Vaza; sv, Vladislav IV av Polen; rus, Владислав IV Ваза, r=Vladislav IV Vaza; la, Ladislaus IV Vasa or Ladislaus IV of Poland (9 June 1595 – 20 May 1648) was King of Poland, Grand Duke of ...
of Poland'', 1620s,
Wawel Royal Castle National Art Collection The Wawel Royal Castle National Art Collection ( pl, Zamek Królewski na Wawelu – Państwowe Zbiory Sztuki) is the residence museum and collection housed in the historic Wawel Castle of Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest ...
File:Peter Paul Rubens - Landscape with the Ruins of Mount Palatine in Rome - WGA20394.jpg, ''Landscape with the Ruins of Mount Palatine in Rome'', 1615 File:La Visión de San Huberto por Jan Brueghel el Viejo con Rubens.jpg, ''Miracle of Saint Hubert'', painted together with Jan Bruegel, 1617 File:Rubens Milkmaids cattle landscape.jpg, ''Landscape with Milkmaids and Cattle'', 1618 File:Peter Paul Rubens - A View of Het Steen in the Early Morning.jpg, '' The Château Het Steen with Hunter'', c. 1635–1638,
National Gallery, London The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director o ...
File:Peter Paul Rubens – Venus, Cupid, Bacchus and Ceres – WGA20283.jpg, ''Venus, Cupid, Bacchus and Ceres'', 1612 File:Peter Paul Rubens - Jupiter and Callisto - WGA20285.jpg, ''Jupiter and Callisto'', 1613, Museumslandschaft of Hesse in
Kassel Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel and the district of the same name and had 201,048 inhabitants in December 2020 ...
File:Pythagoras advocating vegetarianism (1618-20); Peter Paul Rubens.jpg, ''Pythagoras Advocating Vegetarianism'', 1618–1630, by Rubens and
Frans Snyders Frans Snyders or Frans Snijders (11 November 1579, Antwerp – 19 August 1657, Antwerp) was a Flemish painter of animals, hunting scenes, market scenes and still lifes. He was one of the earliest specialist animaliers and he is credited with ...
, inspired by Pythagoras's speech in Ovid's ''
Metamorphoses The ''Metamorphoses'' ( la, Metamorphōsēs, from grc, μεταμορφώσεις: "Transformations") is a Latin narrative poem from 8 CE by the Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his ''magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the wo ...
'',
Royal Collection The Royal Collection of the British royal family is the largest private art collection in the world. Spread among 13 occupied and historic royal residences in the United Kingdom, the collection is owned by King Charles III and overseen by the ...
File:Peter Paul Rubens - Perseus and Andromeda (Hermitage Museum).jpg, ''Perseus and Andromeda'', c. 1622,
Hermitage Museum The State Hermitage Museum ( rus, Государственный Эрмитаж, r=Gosudarstvennyj Ermitaž, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ɪrmʲɪˈtaʂ, links=no) is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is the list of ...
File:Peter Paul Rubens 147.jpg, ''Ermit and sleeping
Angelica ''Angelica'' is a genus of about 60 species of tall biennial and perennial herbs in the family Apiaceae, native to temperate and subarctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere, reaching as far north as Iceland, Lapland, and Greenland. They grow t ...
'', 1628 File:Rubens - Perseo y Andrómeda.jpg, ''Perseus Liberating Andromeda'', 1639–40,
Museo del Prado The Prado Museum ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It is widely considered to house one of the world's finest collections of European art, dating from the ...
File:Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) Peace and War (1629).jpg, ''
Minerva Protecting Peace from Mars ''Minerva protecting Peace from Mars'' or ''Peace and War'' is a painting by Peter Paul Rubens. He produced it in London between 1629 and 1630, during a diplomatic mission from the Spanish Netherlands to Charles I of England. It is now in the Na ...
, 1629–1630,
The National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director of ...
, London'' File:La Fête de Vénus Verticordia (détail) - P.P. Rubens.jpg, Bacchanalia scene with nymphs and satyrs (detail of ''The feast of Venus Verticordia'', 1635–36)
Kunsthistorisches Museum The Kunsthistorisches Museum ( "Museum of Art History", often referred to as the "Museum of Fine Arts") is an art museum in Vienna, Austria. Housed in its festive palatial building on the Vienna Ring Road, it is crowned with an octagonal do ...
in Vienna File:Rubens, Peter Paul - The Three Graces.jpg, ''The Three Graces'', 1635,
Prado The Prado Museum ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum An art museum or art gallery is a building or space for the display of art, usually from the museum's own collection. It migh ...
File:Peter Paul Rubens - Diana and her Nymphs Surprised by the Fauns (Prado).jpg, ''Diana and her Nymphs surprised by the Fauns'', c. 1639–40, Prado Museum File:WLA metmuseum Venus and Adonis by Peter Paul Rubens.jpg, '' Venus and Adonis'', 1635–1638,
Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...
File:Le roi Ixion trompé par Junon, qu'il voulait séduire (Louvre RF 2121) 01.jpg, ''King
Ixion In Greek mythology, Ixion ( ; el, Ἰξίων, ''gen''.: Ἰξίονος means 'strong native') was king of the Lapiths, the most ancient tribe of Thessaly. Family Ixion was the son of Ares, or Leonteus, or Antion and Perimele, or the not ...
fooled by
Juno Juno commonly refers to: *Juno (mythology), the Roman goddess of marriage and queen of the gods *Juno (film), ''Juno'' (film), 2007 Juno may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional characters *Juno, in the film ''Jenny, Juno'' *Ju ...
, whom he wanted to seduce'' (
Louvre Museum The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...
) File:Peter Paul Rubens - The Birth of the Milky Way, 1636-1637.jpg, ''
The Birth of the Milky Way ''The Birth of the Milky Way'', also sometimes known as ''The Origin of the Milky Way'', is an oil-on-canvas painting by the Flemish artist Peter Paul Rubens, produced between 1636 and 1638 and featuring the Greco-Roman myth of the origin of the ...
'', c. 1637, Prado Museum
File:Rubens.Helene.Fourment.jpg, ''Rubens with Hélène Fourment and their son Peter Paul'', 1639,
Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...
File:Helene Fourment in her Bridal Gown by Rubens (1630) - Alte Pinakothek - Munich - Germany 2017.jpg, ''
Helena Fourment Helena Fourment or Hélène Fourment (11 April 1614 – 15 July 1673) was the second wife of Baroque painter Peter Paul Rubens. She was the subject of a few portraits by Rubens, and also modeled for other religious and mythological paintings. Fam ...
in Wedding Dress'', detail, the artist's second wife, c. 1630,
Alte Pinakothek The Alte Pinakothek (, ''Old Pinakothek'') is an art museum located in the Kunstareal area in Munich, Germany. It is one of the oldest galleries in the world and houses a significant collection of Old Master paintings. The name Alte (Old) Pinak ...
File:Peter Paul Rubens - Bathsheba at the Fountain - WGA20270.jpg, ''Bathsheba at the Fountain'', 1635 File:Peter Paul Rubens - Pastoral Scene - WGA20325.jpg, ''Pastoral Scene'', 1636


Drawings

File:0 La Nuit - Pierre Paul Rubens d'après Michel-Ange.JPG, ''The Night'', 1601–1603, black chalk and gouache on paper (after
Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was insp ...
),
Louvre-Lens The Louvre-Lens is an art museum located in Lens, France, approximately 200 kilometers north of Paris. It displays objects from the collections of the Musée du Louvre that are lent to the gallery on a medium- or long-term basis. The Louvre-Lens ...
File:Peter Paul Rubens - Man in Korean Costume, about 1617.jpg, ''Man in
Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
n Costume'', c. 1617, black chalk with touches of red chalk,
J. Paul Getty Museum The J. Paul Getty Museum, commonly referred to as the Getty, is an art museum in Los Angeles, California housed on two campuses: the Getty Center and Getty Villa. The Getty Center is located in the Brentwood, Los Angeles, Brentwood neighborhood ...
File:D.D.Petrus.Paulus.Rubens cropped version 01.jpg, ''Peter Paul Rubens'' (possibly his self-portrait), c. 1620s File:Peter Paul Rubens 162.jpg, ''Young Woman with Folded Hands'', c. 1629–30, red and black chalk, heightened with white, Boijmans Van Beuningen File:Rubens Study of three women.jpg, ''Study of Three Women'' (Psyche and her sisters), c. 1635,
sanguine Sanguine () or red chalk is chalk of a reddish-brown colour, so called because it resembles the colour of dried blood. It has been popular for centuries for drawing (where white chalk only works on coloured paper). The word comes via French fr ...
and ink on paper,
Warsaw University Library The University of Warsaw Library ( pl, Biblioteka Uniwersytecka w Warszawie, BUW) is a library of the University of Warsaw, Poland. History The library was founded in 1816 as a direct consequence of establishing The Royal Warsaw University. S ...
File:Study for a St. Mary Magdalen - Sir Peter Paul Rubens.png, ''Study for a St. Mary Magdalen'', date unknown,
British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
File:Pedro Pablo Rubens - Susana y los viejos - Google Art Project.jpg, ''
Susanna and the elders Susanna (; : "lily"), also called Susanna and the Elders, is a narrative included in the Book of Daniel (as chapter 13) by the Catholic Church, Oriental Orthodox Churches and Eastern Orthodox Churches. It is one of the additions to Daniel, plac ...
'', 1609–1610,
Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando The Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando (RABASF; ), located on the Calle de Alcalá in the heart of Madrid, currently functions as a museum and gallery. A public law corporation, it is integrated together with other Spanish royal acad ...
File:Jan Brueghel de Oude en Peter Paul Rubens - Het aards paradijs met de zondeval van Adam en Eva.jpg,
Jan Brueghel the Elder Jan Brueghel (also Bruegel or Breughel) the Elder (, ; ; 1568 – 13 January 1625) was a Flemish painter and draughtsman. He was the son of the eminent Flemish Renaissance painter Pieter Bruegel the Elder. A close friend and frequent collaborato ...
and Peter Paul Rubens, ''The Garden of Eden with the Fall of Man'',
Mauritshuis The Mauritshuis (; en, Maurice House) is an art museum in The Hague, Netherlands. The museum houses the Royal Cabinet of Paintings which consists of 854 objects, mostly Dutch Golden Age paintings. The collection contains works by Johannes Vermeer ...
, The Hague File:Lot and his daughters, by Peter Paul Rubens.jpg, ''Lot and his daughters'', c. 1613–14 File:Die Heilige Dreifaltigkeit - Peter Paul Rubens.jpg, ''The Holy Trinity'',
Kunstmuseum Basel The Kunstmuseum Basel houses the oldest public art collection in the world and is generally considered to be the most important museum of art in Switzerland. It is listed as a heritage site of national significance. Its lineage extends back to t ...
File:Christ triumphing over Death and Sin mg 0050.jpg, '' Christ Triumphant over Sin and Death'',
Musée des Beaux-Arts de Strasbourg The Musée des Beaux-Arts de Strasbourg (Museum of Fine Arts of Strasbourg) is the old masters paintings collection of the city of Strasbourg, located in the Alsace region of France. The museum is housed in the first and second floors of the ...


Notes


Sources

* Auwers, Michael, ''Pieter Paul Rubens als diplomatiek debutant. Het verhaal van een ambitieus politiek agent in de vroege zeventiende eeuw'', in: Tijdschrift voor Geschiedenis – 123e jaargang, nummer 1, p. 20–33 * * * Evers, Hans Gerhard: ''Peter Paul Rubens.'' F. Bruckmann, Munich 1942, 528 pages, 272 images, 4 color plates (Flemish edition at De Sikkel, Antwerp 1946)
(Information on the book and download link)
* Evers, Hans Gerhard: ''Rubens und sein Werk. Neue Forschungen.'' De Lage Landen, Brussels 1943. 383 pages and plate

* Held, Julius S. (1975) "On the Date and Function of Some Allegorical Sketches by Rubens." In: ''Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes.'' Vol. 38: 218–233. * Held, Julius S. (1983) "Thoughts on Rubens' Beginnings." In: ''Ringling Museum of Art Journal'': 14–35. . * * * * Pauw-De Veen, Lydia de. "Rubens and the graphic arts". In: ''Connoisseur'' CXCV/786 (Aug 1977): 243–251.


Further reading

* Alpers, Svetlana. ''The Making of Rubens''. New Haven 1995.

* * Büttner, Nils, Herr P. P. Rubens. Göttingen 2006. * ''Corpus Rubenianum Ludwig Burchard. An Illustrated Catalogue Raisonne of the Work of Peter Paul Rubens Based on the Material Assembled by the Late Dr. Ludwig Burchard in Twenty-Seven Parts'', Edited by the Nationaal Centrum Voor de Plastische Kunsten Van de XVI en de XVII Eeuw. * Lamster, Mark.
Master of Shadows, The Secret Diplomatic Career of Peter Paul Rubens
' New York, Doubleday, 2009. * Lilar, Suzanne, ''Le Couple'' (1963), Paris, Grasset; Reedited 1970, Bernard Grasset Coll. Diamant, 1972, Livre de Poche; 1982, Brussels, Les Éperonniers, ; Translated as ''Aspects of Love in Western Society'' in 1965, by and with a foreword by Jonathan Griffin, New York, McGraw-Hill, LC 65-19851. * Sauerlander, Willibald. ''The Catholic Rubens: Saints and Martyrs'' (Getty Research Institute; 2014); 311 pages; looks at his altarpieces in the context of the Counter-Reformation. * Schrader, Stephanie,
Looking East: Ruben's Encounter with Asia
', Getty Publications, Los Angeles, 2013. * Vlieghe, Hans,
Flemish Art and Architecture 1585–1700
', Yale University Press, Pelican History of Art, New Haven and London, 1998.


External links

*
Corpus Rubenianum Ludwig Burchard Online

Rubens's palette and painting materials, with bibliography

The Correspondence of Peter Paul Rubens
i
EMLO

Peter Paul Rubens on BALaT – Belgian Art Links and Tools (KIK-IRPA, Brussels)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rubens, Peter Paul 1577 births 1640 deaths 16th-century Flemish painters 17th-century Flemish painters 17th-century diplomats Art collectors from Antwerp Flemish art dealers Catholic painters Converts to Roman Catholicism from Calvinism Counter-Reformation Court painters Flemish Baroque painters Flemish history painters Flemish landscape painters Flemish portrait painters Flemish tapestry artists Painters from Antwerp People from Siegen People of the Habsburg Netherlands Diplomats of the Spanish Netherlands English knights Spanish knights