Rubens in Europe

Magazine Antiques, March, 2004 by Miriam Kramer

Peter Paul Rubens was born in 1577, studied painting in Antwerp, and swiftly outshone his teachers. In 1598 he became a master painter in the Guild of Saint Luke, and two years later he went to Italy and there achieved his artistic maturity. He traveled and worked in Italy and Spain before returning to Antwerp in 1608, where he established himself as an outstanding painter of religious and secular works. Rubens became court painter to the rulers of the Spanish Low Countries, who encouraged other European leaders to commission paintings from him.

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In addition to his success as a painter Rubens traveled widely on diplomatic missions for Spain. He was sent to London by Philip IV, where he so charmed Charles I that he not only received commissions but also a knighthood. Wherever he went, Rubens painted portraits, mythological and religious scenes, and decorative commissions for palaces and churches.

Given his travels, it is fitting that exhibitions devoted to Rubens are being held in a number of European countries. At the Hermitage Rooms in London's Somerset House an exhibition of his oil sketches was recently on view (see Report from Europe in the December 2003 issue of The Magazine ANTIQUES).

The northern French city of Lille, which shares with Genoa the title of European Cultural Capital of 2004, is holding a major exhibition entitled Rubens at the Palais des Beaux-Arts from March 6 to June 14. The curator is Arnauld Brejon de Lavergnee, and the sponsors are Banque Populaire du Nord, Gaz de France, and France Telecom. The accompanying catalogue, published in French, English, and Dutch, can be ordered by telephoning 33-3-20-13-98-80.

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Antwerp is devoting a series of exhibitions and other events to Rubens. The main one, entitled A House of Art: Rubens as Collector, reassembles for the first time a large part of the artist's valuable art collection. In addition to paintings by Titian, Pieter Brueghel the Elder, and Anthony van Dyck it contains classical sculptures, cameos, coins, and crystal vases. The exhibition is on view at the Rubenshuis from March 6 until June 13.

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Also on view in Antwerp is a show entitled From Delacroix to Courbet: Rubens under Discussion, which exhibits early nineteenth-century French romantic and realist paintings on loan from the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Lille, alongside the seventeenth-century Rubens paintings in the Antwerp museum that inspired them. This exhibition can be seen at the Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten from March 6 until June 13.

The Koninklijk Museum has organized two additional exhibitions: The Invention of Landscape: From Patinir to Rubens 1520-1650, on view from May 8 to August 1; and Copyright Rubens: Rubens and Graphic Art, from June 12 to September 12. In addition, the Belgian Tourist Office has organized a number of self-guided walks through the city to highlight various aspects of Rubens's life and work.