Transcript
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Treaty of Munster Spain was a major military power in Europe and used its power to back the might of the
Catholic Church especially in Northern Europe where Protestantism was gaining moreand more ground.
This is a time of conflict when the Netherlands was trying to free itself from Spanishdomination
A truce agreement in 1609 divided the Netherlands into two areas Flanders remained Catholic and in the Spanish fold and the two countries had in
common the religious idealism of the counter-reformation Today the northern part of Flanders is known as Holland and The South which today has become Belgium
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Counter-reformation.
This was a reaction within thecatholic Church to the reformation
The Roman Church felt itself in
need of reform and try to win backlost territory
Pope Paul III (1465-1549)summoned the council of Trent
This reinforced fundamentalCatholic doctrines such as theimmaculate conception the worshipof Mary and martyrs and relics etc.
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Ignatius of Loyola (1491 1556) Emerged as a religious leader
during the Counter-Reformation. Ignatius and a few followers
bound themselves by vows of
poverty, chastity, and obedience.In 1539, they formed the Societyof Jesus, approved in 1540 byPope Paul III,
After being seriously wounded in
1521, he underwent a spiritualconversion while in recovery.
During his period ofconvalescence in 1521, Ignatiusread a series of religious texts,and became fired with an
ambition to emulate the heroicdeeds of Francis of Assisi andother great monastics.
Decided abandon his previousmilitary life and devote himself tolabour for God
Ignatius by Peter Paul Rubens
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Henry IV (1553 1610) King of France from 1589 to 1610 and
King of Navarre from 1572 to 1610. He was the first monarch of the
Bourbon branch of the Capetian
dynasty in France. Huguenot - Henry was involved in the
Wars of Religion before ascending thethrone in 1589.
Before his coronation as King of
France at Chartres, he changed hisfaith from Calvinism to Catholicismand, in 1598, he enacted the Edict ofNantes, which guaranteed religiousliberties to the Protestants, therebyeffectively ending the civil war.
One of the most popular French kings,both during and after his reign, Henryshowed great care for the welfare of hissubjects and displayed an unusualreligious tolerance for the time.
He was assassinated by a fanatical
Catholic, Franois Ravaillac.
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Franois Ravaillac
Stabbed the king to death in Rue de laFerronnerie, while his coach's progress wasstopped by traffic congestion for the Queen's
coronation His widow, Marie de' Medici, served as regent
for their 9-year-old son, Louis XIII, until 1617. Franois Ravaillac 1578 1610 Obsessed by religion, somewhat unstable
character he sought admission into variousreligious catholic orders including the Jesuitsbut was not successful
In 1609, Ravaillac claimed to have experienceda vision instructing him to convince KingHenry IV to convert the Huguenots to
Catholicism. Between Pentecost 1609 and May1610, Ravaillac made three separate trips toParis to tell his vision to the king.
Unable to meet the king, Ravaillac interpretedHenry's decision to invade the SpanishNetherlands as the start of a war against the
Pope. Determined to stop him, he decided tokill the king.
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The Infamous eventtaking place on 14May 1610
He wasimmediatelyapprehendedincarcerated
And tortured To reveal his
accomplices But repeatedly
claimed to havebeen working onhis own
On May 27taken to the Place de Grve in Paris and was tortured before beingpulled apart by four horses, a method of execution reserved for regicides.Alistair Horne describes the torture Ravaillac suffered: "Before being drawn and quartered...
he was scalded with burning sulphur, molten lead and boiling oil and resin, hisflesh then being torn by pincers." Following his execution, Ravaillac's parents
were forced into exile, and the rest of his family was ordered never to use thename "Ravaillac" again.
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Marie de Medici (15751642)
Marie de Medici was the widowedQueen mother of France
She was in effect the ruler of Francewhilst her underage son Louis XIIIwas growing up.
When he became of age she wasunable to accept her son as amature adult and clung to her
regency status The French court was beset with a
political power play between thetwo.
Louis was forced to exile his motherto the provinces and she was not
allowed to return until 1620.Shemoved into the Luxembourg Palaceon the Seine and for the next fiveyears her main preoccupation wasthe refurbishment of the Palace.
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The Marie de' Medici cycle
Rubens was by this time themost sought after andprosperous artist in Europe
Known for his monumentalreligious paintings
However this prstige fromthis particular commissionwas to set him up forsuccess for the rest of hiscareer.
Originally the paintings werehung clockwise inchronological order,decorating the walls of awaiting room expandingfrom a royal apartment inMarie de' Medici'sLuxembourg Palace.
The paintings are nowdisplayed in the same order
in the Louvre Various self Portraits by Rubens
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The Apotheosis of Henry IV Louvre Paris
To commission two vast cycles entailing some 48 vast canvases altogether One was to illustrate the Romance and triumph of her career The other was to illustrate the events of her late husband She was not beautiful and was overweight, her husband was heroic but the
only work that was completed was the cycle focussing on her.
No artist could have achieved this without looking ridiculous but Rubensthrough his great abilities managed to paint a magnificent series.
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Marie de' Medici, The three Fates on clouds beneath the celestial figures
of Juno and Jupiter.
The Fates are depicted as beautiful, nude goddessesspinning the thread of Marie de' Medici's destiny
Their presence at Marie's birth assures her prosperityand success as a ruler that is unveiled in the cycle'ssubsequent panels
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The viewer's first impression ofthe cycle came while enteringthrough the southeast corner.
The most visible works from thisangle were The Coronation in
Saint Denis and The Death ofHenry IV and the Proclamation ofthe Regency.
The first half of the cycle began atthe entrance wall, featuringimages of her childhood years and
marriage to HenryIV.
The Education of Marie de' Medici 1622-24
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Four of the images are devoted entirely to the marriage of Marie and Henry IV, formarriage at Marie's relatively advanced age of twenty-seven was quite rare.
This half ends with a depiction of Marie's coronation. The wall opposite the gallery's entrance presents an image of the assassination and
'
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Rubens, Peter Paul
The Arrival of Marie de' Medici at Marseilles - Detail of Marie de' Medici 1622-26
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Coronation of Marie de'Medici in St. Denis(detail),
by Peter Paul Rubens, 1622-1625.
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The Apotheosis of Henry IV and the Proclamation of the Regency of Marie deMedicisMay 14, 1610 by Peter Paul Rubens
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This was conceived as the climactic
work in a great cycle of Marie deMedici
It is 7m by 4m commissioned for the
palace where it stretched across theentire end wall of the gallery in whichit was hung
Rubens depicts two separate events:the death of the King (assassinated in
1610) and the regency of his widow.
The Presentation of Her Portrait to HenriIV, (from the Marie de' Medici Cycle), 1625,
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The events to the left
Henry IV is taken up to heavenlike a prophet or messiah as
apotheosis means. He is carried by Saturn (with
sickle) the God of time anddeath who delivers him to
Jupiter the supreme God ofpower leaning down from
Olympia to receive him Jupiters eagle is bearing a
thunderbolt in its claws is thesymbol of the ascending soul
The serpent, shot throughwith arrows is an allusion to
the Kings assassin
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The events to the right
The embattled spirit ofFrance kneels and offers theorb to the unwilling widow
(depicted in deep mourning) Above her, a figure
representing the regency
offers her a rudder. The French aristocracy and
the heavenly graces pleadwith her to overcome herhumble reluctance.
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Minervas shield
The depiction on the shield isof the Gorgon Medusa This is an attribute of Minerva
the goddess of war andwisdom
In thanks for her help Perseus
made Minerva a gift ofMedusas head with its hair oflive snakes that could turnliving things to stone shouldthey look upon it
Unlike mars, Minerva is a
warrior of just causesexplaining her inclusion in thepainting
The same shield is present inthe judgment of Paris justbehind Minerva
P i t d b R b ith ti b F S d
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In Greek mythology, Medusa was one of the monsters known as Gorgons.
She often was represented as a winged female creature with hair consisting of snakes.
Because she was mortal, Perseus was able to kill her by cutting off her head. The story istold in the epic, Argonautica.
From her spurting blood, sprang Chrysaor and Pegasus, the flying horse, her two sonsby Poseidon, the sea god.The severed head, which had the power of turning into stone all
who looked upon it, was taken by Athena, who placed it in her shield. See also Ovid.Metamorphoses. IV:617-803.
Painted by Rubens with sections by Frans Snyders.
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The career of Rubens
Rubens was a fortunateman he was good looking
strong and healthy He was also well educated
sensible and good natured In addition he was wealthy
and a diplomat andrecocnised as such by the
crowns of Europe Twice married and by all
accounts very happily so He became court painter in
Mantua Italy at a very youngage and then at 32 he joined
the court of the InfantIsabella and ArchdukeAlbert in Brussels
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The Rubens Look
There is a sweetness toRubens that shows in thevigour of his work
People tend to give eachother a look of wholehearted trust
An example is the judgmentof Paris in which Paris looksat the Goddess withreverence and she returnsthe look innocently amazedat her victory.
The Flemish also loved fullbodied woman and most ofRubens nudes are too fatfor our modern tastes
D V
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Diego Velasquez
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The crowns of Spain before 1640
Spain at the time of Philip IV was not a unified nation but rather a fragmentedfederation of semi independent Kingdoms and provinces
Philip had rights over three large areas called crowns Portugal ,Castile andAragon Castile Spains large central area was itself divided into 10 smaller territories
including the autonomous Basque Provinces
It was the richest of Philips three crowns, the new world treasure flowed
mostly through its ports
Each land had its own Cortes, or Parliament and a proud sense of its ownidentity
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Las Meninas(Spanish for The Maids of
Honour)Diego Velzquez,
1656
At the center of thepainting is a littleprincess the InfantaMargarita Teresa withher maids all clustered
around her Her tutors, page dwarf
in attendance andgigantic dog
We work our way backby stages to the distantreflection of the kingand queen
The entire court ispresented in reverseorder of importance
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Painted for the kings private
summer quarters
It is both a portrait of the Kingsdaughter and a unique method ofhonouring the King himself byportraying the instant the kingwalks into the room and eachfigures response
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The Participants
Is it not strange the King and Queen should be a mere reflection? The attention to the mirror is drawn by the silhouetted courtier It is a question as to whether it is a reflection or a reflection of a painting The king and Queen are secure in their position they can afford to become a
mere reflection It is also a reflection of Velasquez position of familiarity with the family he can
get away with a picture of himself not as a servant but as part of the family
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The Infanta Margarita (165173)
Painted here in a mourning dressfor her father in 1666, The
background figures include heryoung brother Charles II and thedwarf Maribarbola - also in LasMeninas.
She left Spain for her marriage inVienna the same year
Portrait - Juan del Mazo 1666.
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Velasquez inclusion of himselfin the painting.
He occupies a fair portion ofthe painting and his canvasdominates the left hand side
The large copies of Rubens
paintings in the backgroundare diminished (with someirony) by the shadows
The Red Cross on his chestsignifies knighthood whichwas added 2-3 years later.
This is an indication of howVelasquez soughtrecognition and status
Velzquezs paint technique
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Velzquez s paint technique The fluid seemingly hasty brushwork has an arbitrary look from close up As the viewer steps back the brushwork assumes a reality that shows the
skill of the artist
Old Woman cooking eggs 1618
Don Diego de Acedo Sebastian de Morra Francisco Lezcano
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life as a court Jester The dwarves were employed as jesters in the kings courts since medieval times Philip IV favourite was a dwarf named Sebastiano de Morra The dwarves feelings as humans were disregarded and they were expected to endure the
jokes and insults of the courtiers The king would choose the names of the jesters giving them mock titles of ludicrous
grandeur The portrait of Francisco Lezcano (1636-38) shows us his ability to look into the humanity
of the sitter as a human being The portrait shows us the jester can show the same tragic dignity and unalienable
humanity as the figure of the tragic dying Christ on the cross. Don Diego de Acedo a minor court official
Don Diego de Acedo Sebastian de Morra Francisco Lezcano
Th Gi i
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The pope - GiovanniBattista Pamphilj [1574-1655], made a cardinal in1629 and elected to thethrone on September 16,
1644) The Pope is seated in a red
armchair, which is pickedout from the opulent red ofthe curtain behind it by itsgilded ornamentation.
In the strong features, thecritically keen suspiciouseyes strike a note of livelyintelligence.
A man aware of his ownpower is wonderfullyexpressed in the contrast
between the face and thefine nervous hands, whichconvey the sensitivity ofthis powerful figure.
One of the world's supreme
masterpieces of portraiture.
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Bacon and Velasquez
Infante Felipe Prspero 1660
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Infante Felipe Prspero 1660
A sickly child from birth, andhe died at the age of four.
He appears in this picture in
a pink dress trimmed withsilver, striking accessories:
various amulets weresupposed to protect himagainst the evil eye
amber apple was thought to
ward off infections. The bloodless face of the
blue-eyed prince looks evenpaler due to the contrastwith the silver highlights inhis straw-coloured fair hair.
The room is full of shadowsthat seem to threaten thelittle figure.
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