Peter Paul Rubens is a man so known for his sumptuous female nudes that his name has been coined to describe the style: Rubenesque. But whilst the Dulwich Picture Gallery’s latest exhibition Rubens & Women includes these voluptuous figures, it paints a fuller portrait of an artist whose oeuvre is not just a feast of women but a feast for them, writes Madeleine Kelly.
It is the eyes that first hold you, from every corner of the room. Marchesa Maria Serra Pallavicino looks commandingly down at you, a stately head perched on top of an extravagant ruff. In the unfinished work, Portrait of a Young Woman Holding a Chain, the face of the captivating sitter shines against a dark background. A portrait of Ruben’s first wife painted shortly after she died, brings her back to life for a moment, gently smiling across the gallery space.
It is no wonder that when Maria de’ Medici wanted to decorate her new residence, the Palais de Luxembourg, with the events of her life, she chose Rubens. This Flemish painter had learnt to capture women, not as erotic show things but as people. The Picture Gallery has a preparatory sketch for this ambitious scheme. De’ Medici’s head is turned to the side, and she looks up witheringly. She is not beautiful; she is in charge.
Curators Ben van Beneden and Amy Orrock make the case for the importance of women to Rubens’ work. Not just as the subjects of much of his oeuvre but the inspiration. We are not encouraged to dwell too much on Rubenesque bodies until this point has been sufficiently made.
For die-hard Rubens’ fans, however, there is still plenty of flesh on display at The Dulwich Picture Gallery this Autumn. There are, of course, the undulating stomachs, the dimples, and the full breasts that the artist is known for, but here again, Orrock and van Beneden subvert our expectations. Ruben’s sketch of Hermaphrodite shows a reclining male figure with breasts and a woman’s hair. In another drawing, a woman’s stomach muscles resemble those of a classical male nude. Ruben’s nudes no longer appear as merely sensual women but erotic experiments in form.
The final room is an astounding orgiastic festival of plenty. Juno appears as the giant goddess of love handles, squirting milk across the galaxy. Breast milk flows from Venus too, as she benevolently feeds Cupid. Where men appear in these paintings, they are mostly lurking in the shadows. In Diana Returning from the Hunt, the satyrs leer at the goddess, offering only fruit whilst she cradles her kills. Next to weary Diana, you recognise her follower’s gaze. They appear to be the eyes of Isabella Brandt. Whilst the satyrs fawn, she looks out at you, knowingly – a Ruben’s woman yes, but a woman all the same.
Dulwich Picture Gallery, Gallery Road, London, SE21 7AD until 28th January. Times: Tue-Sun, 10am–5pm. Admission: Adults £16.50.
Booking: www.dulwichpicturegallery.org.uk
