Portrait of a Man, possibly Peter van Hecke (1591-1645)
Peter Paul Rubens
c.c.1630
This man is probably the Antwerp dealer Peter van Hecke, and his wife Clara Fourment is hanging on the right. They belonged to Rubens’ intimate family circle, as Clara Fourment was the elder sister of Rubens’ second wife Hélène. The couple clearly live in comfort, in view of their fashionable clothing of shiny black fabrics and fine lace collars.
Rubens was the leading Flemish painter of the seventeenth century. His flamboyant, baroque style influenced a whole generation of artists after him.
oil on panel
114.5 x 90.5 cm.
Acquisition with the support of Sponsor Lottery, Ministery of Education, Culture and Science, Friends of the Mauritshuis Foundation, Fund for the National Cultural Heritage, Mondriaan Foundation, VSB Fund, Rembrandt Association (supported by the Prince Bernhard Culture Fund), Jaffé-Pierson Foundation, Prince Bernhard Culture Fund, Dr Hendrik Muller National Fund, 2003