More than 250 letters by Rubens have been preserved. But from his second wife, we only two possess business letters. Are we allowed to fill in the gaps of history with what we can deduce from this quickly made family portrait (around 1636, in the Louvre Museum)?

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Helena Fourment talks:

Do you like the painting? I certainly do! I know people gossip about me being the most beautiful woman in Antwerp. But more importantly, I have a loving husband who has called me from the house to his studio many times; he then asks me to sit down, to smile, not too much …
And in a few brush strokes, there I was, on canvas. I love this family portrait more than the ones where I had to pose as an ancient goddess, or the one with ‘The Fur Coat/het Pelsken’.

In this painting I am depicted with our two eldest children; Clara Johanna is about four years old here and Frans has just turned three.

Clara preferred to stand up, but Frans chose to sit still. Hence, Peter Paul had the time to paint Frans’ s face very delicately. He is really looking at you, the painters’ trick to draw you into the story.

Meanwhile, I keep an eye on him and hold him in my arms, so that his beautiful hat doesn’t fly away.

We didn’t pose that long, because Peter Paul himself doesn’t like to waste time, even when he paints for his and our pleasure (too much work, he says). You can see how quickly he painted my dress, my red cloak and also the blueish-greyish sky. You would think that we are sitting under a tree or in our garden pavilion, but not really in the shade.

Maybe he’ll continue to work on this painting again, though I don’t see the need of it. I’d rather see him put some other work on his easel!

Continued on Timeline: 1638 – Self-portrait of older Rubens