Rubens in Paris and Vienna
From now until 14 January 2018, the Musée du Luxembourg in Paris will be exhibiting the princely portraits by the multi-facetted genius Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640).
He managed to climb the highest social ladder for a painter at the time. His immense body of work covers just about every subject in painting. His princely portraits remain less well known, yet they are essential elements of his career. As a prince of painters and painter of princes, Rubens was a close friend of his prestigious models towards the end of his life and at the end of his career. He understood perfectly which prototypes to follow, which social codes needed to be observed (the level of idealisation of the model's features, symbols of power and the importance of costume and decorum), he knew how to incorporate just the right level of flamboyance and naturalism in his representations, and he breathed new life into his official effigies. Each work has its own inspiration. As a result, he became the most important painter of his time, whose talent was in high demand among princes.
Another exhibition devoted to the work of the Baroque painter has also opened its doors, this time in Vienna: "Peter Paul Rubens: the Power of Transformation", at the Kunsthistorisches Museum. The exhibition runs until 21 January 2018 and presents 120 of the artist's works thanks to loans from museums around the world, including the Prado in Madrid and the Hermitage in St. Petersburg. Major works will be on display: mythological and religious subjects as well as intimate portraits.
You can find more information at http://en.museeduluxembourg.fr/exhibitions/rubens-royal-portraits and www.khm.at/en/rubens2017/.