Honeysuckle Bower
[2] They wed in 1609, the same year that work was created; it was ultimately given to Isabella’s father Jan Brant and would later end up in the collection of Johann Wilhem II of Düsseldorf.[5] The painting is a full-length double portrait of the couple seated in a bower (wikt), also called an arbor of honeysuckle.The couple is dressed in fine clothing of an aristocratic class within this portrait while also maintaining a casual and adoring pose.But I find it very hard to separate grief for this loss from the memory of a person whom I must love and cherish as long as I live…”[5] Other important historical contexts contributed to the meaning of this double portrait, including the popular art theories and books at the time, mainly, the concept of liefde baart kunst and the use of emblem books in the construction of this painting by Rubens.[2]This particular artwork by Rubens is one example of this concept illustrated in painting, specifically the idea of the wife or spouse as the model and that relationship in tales.Rubens may have been influenced by a notable and popular emblem book about the “domestication of love,” titled, Amorum Emblemata (1608) by Otto van Veen.[13] The composition of this piece also pulled from a emblem book, titled Emblematum liber by Andrea Alciato; specifically, the motto and printed image of In fidem uxorium (conjugal fidelity).[3] Later on, Honeysuckle Bower and other paintings by Rubens in the Düsseldorf Collection were given to the Alte Pinakothek museum in Munich as a form of inheritance in 1805.
Peter Paul RubensOil on canvasAlte PinakothekMunichself-portraitFlemish Baroque painterIsabella BrantJohann Wilhem IIhoneysuckleMiddle AgescloisterRoman de la Rosegovernors of the NetherlandsstockingscollarMadonna of HumilitySt. Michael's Abbey, Antwerpbubonic plaguePierre DupuyNetherlandsconjugaleroticemblem bookOtto van VeenemblemsAndrea AlciatoJohann Wilhelm IIDüsseldorfAlte Pinakothek museumHarvard University PressPrestel VerlagYale University PressCambridge University PressThe Descent from the CrossLeda and the SwanThe DepositionSelf-Portrait in a Circle of Friends from MantuaEquestrian Portrait of the Duke of LermaPortrait of a Young WomanHercules and OmphaleHeraclitus and DemocritusVirgin and ChildThe Fall of PhaetonThe Baptism of ChristThe Gonzaga Family in Adoration of the Holy TrinityTransfigurationThe CircumcisionPortrait of Marchesa Brigida Spinola-DoriaPortrait of Maria di Antonio SerraPortrait of a Noblewoman with an AttendantPortrait of Giovanni Carlo Doria on HorsebackSaint Gregory with SaintsMadonna della VallicellaSusanna and the EldersThe Head of Saint John the Baptist Presented to SalomeAdoration of the MagiSamson and DelilahCoronation of the VirginJuno and ArgusRaising of the CrossConversion of Saint PaulMassacre of the InnocentsVenus FrigidaPrometheus BoundThe Four PhilosophersAntwerp ResurrectionVisitationRoman CharityEcce HomoDescent from the CrossSaint Teresa of Ávila's Vision of the Holy SpiritThe Tribute MoneyThe Defeat of SennacheribThe Four ContinentsChrist Giving the Keys to Saint PeterPortrait of a CommanderThe Crowning of the Virtuous HeroThe Incredulity of Saint ThomasThe Death of AdonisVenus and AdonisSt SebastianThe Virgin Mary and Saint Francis Saving the World from Christ's AngerMadonna della CestaIxion, King of the Lapiths, Deceived by Juno, Who He Wished to SeduceDaniel in the Lions' DenBacchanaliaA Statue of CeresThe Hippopotamus and Crocodile HuntThe Tiger HuntTheodosius and Saint AmbroseThe Wild Boar HuntFlorence ResurrectionThe Virgin and Child Surrounded by the Holy InnocentsErichthonius Discovered by the Daughters of CecropsThe Wolf and Fox HuntThe Lion and Leopard HuntRomulus and RemusMiracles of St. Francis XavierSaint Stephen TriptychTwo Women with a CandleThe Meeting Between Abraham and MelchizedekChrist and the Penitent SinnersMars and Rhea SilviaThe Garden of Eden with the Fall of ManThe Great Last JudgementA Bearded ManThe Five SensesTwo SatyrsMedusaThe Rape of the Daughters of LeucippusChrist Triumphant over Sin and DeathThe Prodigal SonThe Union of Earth and WaterTigress with Her CubsMucius Scaevola before Lars PorsennaFeast in the House of Simon the PhariseeSt Mary Magdalene in EcstasyThe Small Last JudgementThe Fall of the DamnedLandscape with Philemon and BaucisPortrait of a Young Man in ArmorSaint George and the DragonPerseus Freeing AndromedaSaints Dominic and Francis Saving the World from Christ's AngerThe Rape of Orithyia by BoreasChrist on the Cross