The Elevation of the Cross (1610–1611)
Cathedral of Our Lady, Antwerp
Straining labourers haul the cross upright in a dynamic diagonal triptych
Image: Peter Paul Rubens · Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
Art
Peter Paul Rubens
1577–1640 · Flemish
Baroque
Peter Paul Rubens was the dominant painter of Flemish Baroque art, running a huge workshop in Antwerp that produced altarpieces, portraits, landscapes and vast decorative cycles for the courts of Europe. He was also a scholar and diplomat, knighted by both Charles I of England and Philip IV of Spain. His energetic, sensuous style made "Rubenesque" a byword for fleshy figures.
How to spot them
- ▸Swirling, diagonal compositions full of muscular movement and billowing drapery
- ▸Voluptuous, pearly-pink female nudes — the origin of "Rubenesque"
- ▸Grand allegories crowded with gods, putti and personifications flattering royal patrons
- ▸Quiz clue pattern: Antwerp, Banqueting House ceiling, diplomat-painter, pupil Van Dyck
Key works
The Descent from the Cross (1612–1614)
Cathedral of Our Lady, Antwerp
Christ's pale body slides down a white shroud; commissioned by the Arquebusiers' Guild
Image: Peter Paul Rubens · Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
Samson and Delilah (c. 1609–1610)
National Gallery, London
Samson sleeps in Delilah's lap as his hair is cut; its attribution has been disputed by some critics
Image: Peter Paul Rubens · Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
The Marie de' Medici Cycle (1622–1625)
Louvre, Paris
Twenty-four huge canvases glorifying the French queen mother, made for the Luxembourg Palace
Image: Ivo Jansch · CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
The Consequences of War (1638–1639)
Palazzo Pitti, Florence
Mars breaks free of Venus to wreak havoc — an allegory of the Thirty Years' War
Image: Peter Paul Rubens · Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
Le Chapeau de Paille (c. 1622–1625)
National Gallery, London
Portrait of a woman (probably Susanna Lunden) in a hat that is actually felt, not straw
Quick-fire facts
- •Rubens was born in Siegen, Westphalia, where his Protestant family was in exile, but grew up in Antwerp.
- •He spent 1600–1608 in Italy, working for the Duke of Mantua, Vincenzo Gonzaga.
- •He painted the ceiling of the Banqueting House in Whitehall for Charles I, installed in 1636.
- •As a diplomat he helped negotiate peace between England and Spain (1629–1630) and was knighted by Charles I.
- •Anthony van Dyck worked as his leading assistant in Antwerp.
- •His second wife, Helena Fourment, was 16 when they married in 1630; she appears in many later works.
- •His house and studio in Antwerp is now the Rubenshuis museum.
- •His Massacre of the Innocents sold at Sotheby's in 2002 for £49.5 million.
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Sources
- Encyclopaedia Britannica — Peter Paul Rubens
- National Gallery, London — Samson and Delilah; Portrait of Susanna Lunden (Le Chapeau de Paille) (collection entries)
- E. H. Gombrich — The Story of Art