Sir Peter Paul Rubens was a noted Flemish painter and designer and the most influential figure of Baroque art in northern Europe. He was born in 1577 and died in 1640. He began his career in Antwerp, and his masters were three fairly undistinguished painters of that city--Tobias Verhaecht, Adam van Noort, and Otto van Veen. The latter of the three had studied in Rome and could offer the young painter knowledge of the world outside Antwerp, and he did indeed infuse the young man with a desire to visit Italy, which he did in 1600. Little of Rubens's early work survives, and the style we know was formed largely in Italy, where he remained until 1608 and worked for Vincenzo Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua, who sent the young painter to most of the principal art centers of Italy to make copies for the ducal collection. As was true of most painters of the Renaissance era, Rubens drew on classical mythology, a legacy of the revival of learning that took place in that period, and an examination of how Rubens used mythology and mythological references as well as Christian references in his works may suggest how he changed his use of such symbolism over time.
Rubens produced over 1,000 paintings in a number of different genres. He was extremely well-read, and his interests ranged from Stoic philosophy to the study of rare gems. he traveled widely and examined and often copied the art of other eras. He also had a strong political bent and worked for many years using his painting as a cover for his real work as a diplomat, frequently participating in peace negotiations on behalf of his homeland, the Spanish Netherlands. The time Rubens spent in Italy was important for the mythology that developed in his work, a mythology derived from Roman era myths and legends an from the artworks of Italy which depicted these stories and symbols. Mantua was a small duchy in Northern Italy, and the Duke of Mantua, Vincenzo I, was an ambitious, licentious ...