RUBENS—DIPLOMAT AND PAINTER.

Otago Witness, Issue 2902, 27 October 1909, Page 81

RUBENS— DIPLOMAT AND PAINTER.

) From the days of his childhood, ' when he became page to Marguerite de Ligno, to his maturity, w.hen political missions took him to the Court? of Aladrid and London. Rubens (writes P. G. Konody in the Daily Mail, whon noticing Mr Edward 1 Dillon's Rubens," published by Messrs MeI thuen) was the companion of kings and 1 princes ; and from his extensive picture fact tory at Antwerp, where an army of assis- ■ tants carried cat his pictorial inventions, i he supplied the great of the world- with | thousands upon thousands of paintings, ; sometimes by his own hand, but more frequently merely based upon his designs, with the finishing touches — a few enlivening sweeps of the brue'i, a few telling notes of brilliant colour — addsd by the master to puil the things together. And yet, how meagre is our knowledge, not only of hie private life, but of th-o 'evolution of that art which was to dominate his and the following generation ! | We know that he studied under Verj Jiaeght, Van Ncorfc, and-Van Veen — painters jof little distinction, whose influence is \ scarcely to be detected in his work. When i at the age of 22, in 1600, lie set out for Italy and entered th© service of the Duke of Mantua, he had already gained f&ma a.9 one of the foremost painters of his age, and was able to take a fairly independent, attitude towards his ducal employer. And: yet there is nothing — literally not a single picture — to show as the achievement on which this reputation is based. I For eight years ho remained in the Duke ■of Mantua's pay ; and we know of a -nission on which he was sent to the Spanish , Court, of travels to Rome and Genoa and ! other centres for the purpose of study, cf a few altar-pieces painted during thase years for other ''clients" ; but with tho exception of the "Trinity" altar-piece for the Jesuit cburch at Miantua there- 13 scarcely any evidence of work done for the Gonzaga duke. ! Tho other pictures painted during his i stay in Spain and Italy testify to his* clcsej study of the Italian matters. Tbey contain echoes of Correggio. Raphael. Michelangelo. I Caravaggio, and others, and are hardly of I surprising merit. But, at any rate, they I were entirely done by his own hand. From I the moment of his return to Antwerp, ia 1608, he entered into his position as the leadin? master of his age. and began "his 'extensive employment of assistants, with whose help he turned out acres of painted canvaa. In his palatial house, amid the art treasures he had collected from every part of Europe, surrounded by his host of pupils, Rubsna lived like a grand seigneur, although h-e remained a hard worker to tho end, rising every morning at 4 o'clock, andi was not muoh givan to, pompous show. H^ amassed considerable wealth and honours, was given the pa-tent of nobility by Philip of Spain, and knighted by Charles I of England.

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