Rubenshuis

facade of Rubenshuis

Last Tuesday I went to Rubenshuis, the home and studio of the great Flemish painter, Peter Paul Rubens. Let's just say it was totally awesome...and it all began for me with the leather wallpaper! Leather! No pictures were allowed, so please try to imagine embossed leather in shades of brown with images of birds and flowers. It was gorgeous. The house is full of paintings by Rubens as well as many of his contemporaries. Everyday objects and things he collected during his travels were also on view. The best surprise for me was the jewelry and personal accessories...a necklace with gold and enamel rosettes and polished rock crystals in tiny cage-like structures, an impressive gilded-silver chain from a marksmen's club Rubens was a member of, and my favorite, the wire frame, called a "portefraes," used to support a cartwheel ruff.

gardens behind the house

The paintings that really knocked me out included...

Adam and Eve, Peter Paul Rubens

(a classic!)

 Young Boy on His Deathbed, Matthijs van den Bergh

(beautiful, macabre, this image is only a detail as I cannot find the entire painting online)

Anthony van Dyke, Peter Paul Rubens

(it's the light and the look on his face)

Portrait of Archduchess Isabella, Peter Paul Rubens
(she's wearing s ruff and some fantastic jewelry)

Thanks for reading.