Steve Schierholz

ART-1010-425-F16
Professor Bingham
8/29/2016
Artist Report
You should describe your artists:
a. Personality
Rubens personality certainly overcame the era of his birth. He was found to be
very happy; a lively and optimistic personality. Living in a troubled world, he was able to
still express himself through his paintings. Even though he was born in a time of
religious strife, he still thought of himself to be a loyal Catholic, even though he was
baptized a Lutheran. Rubens was bright and quick to learn, which helped him learn to
speak other languages like Greek and Latin to name a few. He also did well in many
other subjects such as mathematics, history, and some science. Even though he did well
with schooling, he always knew that he wanted to be a painter, and was eager to start
his painting career.
b. Family Life
Peter Paul Rubens was born on June 28th, 1577 to his parents Jan Rubens and
Maria Pypelinckx. He had two siblings: Blandina the eldest, and Philip his older teenage
brother. In addition to the two siblings he had, he had three other siblings that died
early on in life due to the fact that modern medicine had not come around. His father
was a lawyer of Antwerp but had to flee to Germany due to his religious beliefs. His

father was also thrown in prison at one time because he had an affair, but was later
released because of his wife, Rubens mother. Because of this, he was forced to live in
Siegen, Germany. His father passed away in 1587, which allowed his mother to return to
Antwerp with Rubens and his two siblings. His brother Philip was a very smart student
and won employment as secretary to a leading citizen. He later became a tutor to the
children of his employer, where he accompanied them to the University of Louvain.
While there, Philip continued his education and was eventually recognized as an
outstanding young scholar of classical philosophy and literature. During Peter Paul
Rubens younger years, his family was somewhat wealthy which allowed him to obtain
some education. Eventually, this was halted due to the fact that his older sister,
Blandina, got married and used the family fortune to pay for a dowry. Later on, she
helped her brother with employment, but it was short-lived as Rubens wanted to
become a painter and was eager to do so.
c. Time Period
Rubens was born into a time when religion played a big role in everyday life. The
era was named The Protestant Reformation, which had started earlier in the century.
During this time, there was no such thing as religious freedom, and you were expected
to only take the word of God from respected priests. Those who did not were
considered heretics, and were brought before the courts of the Inquisition, which was
conducted by enthusiastic priests. Much of this questioning was done by torture to try
and get the offender to admit guilt. This resulted in many deaths and the destruction of
many towns by mercenary armies. This continued on during Rubens life which created a

lot of misery and suffering. Later on, the Counter Reformation was created to help
counter the growing strength of Protestantism and help reform the church within. Even
though this was going on, this time period saw many advances in science and art. This
time period also produced many philosophers and saints that help shape Western
Civilization.
Describe one work of art that you feel was the most significant piece your artist produced
and in your own words explain why.
Description of painting:
This painting portrays the creation of the Milky Way which was inspired by the GrecoRoman myth. The painting consists of Hera, Hercales, and Zeus. This painting shows Hera
pulling away her breast from Heracles which created the Milky Way. In the back of this paining
sits Zeus, who is sitting and watching this happen. It also has displays a gold chariot in the
background that is being led by two geese.
Why:
I feel that this was one of his most significant pieces of art because it portrayed a scene
that was believed by a myth, but brings a great deal of symbolism. This painting demonstrates
the creation of the Milky Way that we all live in. The way that this was believed to be created
was the spilling of Heras breast milk that she pulled away from Heracles. This to me
demonstrates what a mother must do to help her children grow to be their own person. She
must take something away to help create something better for their children. This also shows
Zeus in the background while this scene is playing out. This leads me to believe that the mother
is the one that has a lot of the influence on a child during this growth period. Not only does this

demonstrate to me the growth of a man but it also shows me the craziness of the Greek myths
that were created and believed during this time. Furthermore, the forced religious beliefs of the
area would have prevented the types of beliefs portrayed in this painting.
Describe what emotions you feel this painting portrays and explain how the artist used the
Principles and Elements of Design to convey these feelings.
Describe your emotions and the Principles and Elements used:
When looking at this painting I tend to feel many emotions. The first emotion that I
experience when I look at this painting is curiosity. The reason I say this is the artist paints the
mother and the child a brighter color then the rest of the painting. Does this mean that the
artist feels that a relationship between a mother and son is far more important than the
relationship between a father and son? This also leads me to believe that the artist had a better
relationship with his mother than his father. This also tends to make me think that the raising of
a child may not be a shared venture between the father and mother. The painter did a great job
of using placement in this painting and put the father figure in the background observing the
interaction between the mother and son. I also feel that the artist did a great job ensuring that
the painting is symmetrical by having the mother and child in the middle with father on the left
side and the geese on the right side which balances the painting out for me. Overall I enjoyed
this painting as it led me down many paths that hit close to home for me.
Describe your artists style:
Rubens style was very appealing during the time period that he lived in. His style is best
described by the book First Impressions: Peter Paul Rubens where it states:

In all his works one can see the delight that Rubens took in handling of pigment. It
shows in the beautifully ordered, painterly surfaces of his pictures, in the sure and free
but controlled brushwork, in the richness and variety of his colors, and in the masterful
modulation of textures and surfaces-all express the satisfaction of a superlative
craftsman in total control of his medium. But no matter how extraordinary his skills,
Rubens was much more than a technician.
His specific style can be seen in every painting that he does. His paintings are realistic, and at
the same time, allow you to have a glimpse into the time period where he lived. What I see
most in his paintings is his attention to detail in the styles of the subject that he is painting. This
allows you to imagine what this time was like and how the people may have been in this era. In
a lot of his paintings he included symbols which held clues to the meanings of the paintings.

Works Cited
A. Book:
McLanathan, Richard B. K. Peter Paul Rubens. New York: H.N. Abrams, 1995. Print.

B. Online Website:
"Peter Paul Rubens Biography." Encycolpedia of World Biography. N.p., n.d. Web. 29
Aug. 2016. <http://www.notablebiographies.com/Ro-Sc/Rubens-PeterPaul.html>.
C. Art Data Base:
"Peter Paul Rubens (15771640) and Anthony Van Dyck (15991641): Paintings | Essay |
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art." The Met's
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. The Met, n.d. Web. 29 Aug. 2016.
<http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/rvd_p/hd_rvd_p.htm>.