{"id":3036,"date":"2024-06-19T15:54:05","date_gmt":"2024-06-19T13:54:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/home\/east\/rubens-house\/rubens-self-portrait-1621\/"},"modified":"2025-08-19T17:03:25","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T15:03:25","slug":"rubens-self-portrait-1621","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/en\/home\/east\/rubens-house\/rubens-self-portrait-1621\/","title":{"rendered":"Rubens: self-portrait 1621"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-page\" data-elementor-id=\"3036\" class=\"elementor elementor-3036 elementor-893\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-ad42995 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"ad42995\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-dbf73d7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"dbf73d7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Self-portrait of Peter Paul Rubens<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3ff81ff e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"3ff81ff\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0848873 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"0848873\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #339966;\"><strong>As soon as the Rubens House reopens, you will be able to admire his self-portrait, today on display in the Rubens Experience.<br \/>\nIn anticipation, click on the image.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2082\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2082\" style=\"width: 226px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"http:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/211P-RH-PPR-Zelfportret-1621.jpg\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-567 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/211P-RH-PPR-Zelfportret-1621-226x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"226\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/211P-RH-PPR-Zelfportret-1621-226x300.jpg 226w, https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/211P-RH-PPR-Zelfportret-1621-768x1020.jpg 768w, https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/211P-RH-PPR-Zelfportret-1621.jpg 771w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 226px) 100vw, 226px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2082\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Self-portrait 1621\/23<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>We possess numerous letters from the painter that give us an insight into his life and work. Yet Rubens&#8217; deepest personality remains in the shadows behind his portraits, both the one close to the beginning of his career and the one near the end of it. <\/em><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>Peter Paul Rubens talks: <\/em><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">All painters do it: portray themselves. My late brother Philip (+1611) quoted a Greek philosopher: \u2018<em>know thyself<\/em>\u2019. You may argue that we mostly show ourselves from our most beautiful side, just like a painter&#8217;s model. That\u2019s OK, I will not contradict you.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">A master\u2019s self-portrait is like a signboard for our studio: from the original painting, done by me, my staff produces copies. Such a copy can then be sent to potential customers who collect portraits of artists. This particular painting is not that large: about 24 by 18 inches [61.5 * 45 cm]; so it\u2019s easy to find a place for it.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">But I must admit that I&#8217;m used to painting in a larger format, &#8220;<em>according to the requirements of the work\/a se meliora forma<\/em>&#8220;. Think of big customers like the English King Charles! Once I wrote to his artistic advisor:<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; padding-left: 40px;\"><em>&#8220;As for His Majesty and His Highness the Prince of Wales, I shall always be pleased to receive the honour of their commissions. As for the hall in the new palace, I must admit that it is more convenient for me, by a natural inclination, to produce really large works, rather than small curiosities. Each according to his ability; my gift is such that no undertaking, however enormous in quantity and variety of subjects, has ever discouraged me.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Again, I admit as much: I am ambitious. I am especially proud that I have breathed new life into the craft of painting in our country. I do appreciate the work of my colleagues and often pay the full market price for their paintings, to enlarge my private collection.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">My teacher Otto van Veen and my years in Italy have taught me that our brushes should be guided by a little more passion \u2013 warmth, movement. But at the same time, we must remain faithful to the tradition of portraying our fellow countrymen and -women true to life, with their faces, hairdos, clothing\u00a0 \u2026 in other words with their real characters.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #339966;\">Continued on Timeline: 1626 &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/en\/home\/east\/rubens-house\/rubens-drawing-of-isabella-brant\/\">Drawing of Isabella Brant<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Self-portrait of Peter Paul Rubens As soon as the Rubens House reopens, you will be able to admire his self-portrait, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":3034,"menu_order":211,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"no-sidebar","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"full-width-container","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"disabled","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-3036","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3036","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3036"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3036\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6274,"href":"https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3036\/revisions\/6274"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3034"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rubens-antwerpen.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3036"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}