Rubens, Arrival (or Disembarkation) of Marie de Medici at Marseilles,1621-25

Peter Paul Rubens, Arrival (or Disembarkation) of Marie de Medici at Marseilles,1621-25, oil on canvas, 394 x 295 cm (Musée du Louvre, Paris)

Speakers: Drs. Beth Harris and Steven Zucker

STEVEN: We're in the Louvre,

and we are looking at the monumental cycle by Peter Paul Rubens of Marie de Medici.

There are 24 canvases that were painted by Rubens over a four year period with the help of his workshop.

Now according to the contract, he had to paint all the figures

but his assistants could certainly paint in much of the rest.

This is a major commision by one of the most powerful women in Europe at this time,

if not the most powerful woman.

Her father was the Duke of Tuscany,

and her husband was Henry IV, King of France.

This cycle is a commemoration of the major events of her life.

Although, I have to come out and say it,

it is absurd in its grandeur.

It is completey over the top.

This is the woman who had some significant events in her life,

but certainly was extremely wealthy and extremely powerful.

Nevertheless, Rubens clearly had to struggle and bring in every mythological stage prop that he could

in order to complete a cycle that was, we can only say, dedicated to her ego.

In reality, she had an interesting and problematic life.

There were quite a number of scandals, and not least of which was when her son, who would be Louis XIII.

He was too young to take the throne, and so she was in control of France as regent.

But then when he finally came to age, she continued to reign. She wouldn't let him to ascend to the throne

and when he was finally old enough and had the authority to be able to say, "No, it's my turn,"

he actually banished her from France and he wouldn't allow her to came back for years.

BETH: And you get the sense of why,

because she was obviously very ambitous, very powerful

and it might have been hard to rule in her presence

STEVEN: In her shadow.

Let's take a look at the ninth painting in this series of 24.

It is when she is coming to France from Italy.

It's called the "The Disembarkation at Marseilles,"

and, you know, to get off a ship is not usually not seen as a particularly triumphant moment,

but Rubens is able to make this seem as if it, itself, is a triumphant moment.

BETH: Right, she is the queen,

Victory above her with trumpts announcing her arrival.

STEVEN: That's right. Not just one, but two trumpets.

BETH: This is the beginning of her fulfillment of her destiny as Queen of France.

STEVEN: And we see France personified by a figure

that seems to be preparing to kneel before her

wearing a blue cape of gold fleur de lys.

BETH: Which is the symbol of the royal family of France

STEVEN: Behind her is a Knight of Malta that looks on.

This fabulous ship, just heavily wrought.

This sky, in the most baroque fashion is just swirling and full of energy,

but that's nothing with compared to what goes on below the gangplank.

BETH: That's right. We have three nereids or sea nymphs below her

along with the gods of the sea, writhe and turn.

STEVEN: Almost as if they are the the sea themselves.

It's as if their bodies are waves.

There's this just tremendous energy and real beauty.

I mean, look at the colors and the understanding of the torsion of the body.

BETH: The drama of their poses contrast with the stateliness

and the grandeur of Marie de Medici above.

STEVEN: You'll noticed that they are actually assisting

by holding the ship fast to the land so that she can walk easily.

BETH: They enabled the pagan gods and goddesses, and figures of victory,

are all there at the service of Marie de Medici's destiny as Queen

And it's strange, she's a little bit set back

compared to the sea nymphs who really occupy more than a third of the canvas.

STEVEN: Okay, so I think we've made the point that it's completely over the top,

but let's get really close and take a look at the paint. BETH: Okay

STEVEN: So the painting is hung in such a way that it starts about four feet off the floor,

so that we only really look up at the sea gods and nereids.

In Rubens's characteristic handling of paint,

there is just a tremendous sense of motion and energy.

I am really struck by the beard and the grey hair

of the sea god in the foreground.

If you look directly under him

you can see what look like a raw strokes of paint.

There's a kind of energy a kind of facility that Rubens has.

And then look at the coloration of the nereids.

They are full of pinks and yellows and greens and blues.

BETH: and look at all the foreshortening that is going on.

There's a post that one of the Nereids is holding onto

and tying a rope around that's moving into our space.

That sea god that you talked about a moment ago

reaches his hand back into space.

Everything in the bottom of this canvas is in motion.

STEVEN: I am particularly taken by the way in which their eyes are absoulutely alive

with specks of white paint which become this beautiful reflective surface.

You also see that in the pearls in the hair of the women,

and then you see it in the drips of water that come off their body.

Now these 24 canvases were, of course, not originally arrayed in the Louvre.

They were in the Palace of the Luxembourg Gardens,

which was, in fact, Marie de Medici's own palace and that was built to remind her of Florence.

BETH: It's really fun to go from one to the other

and read the story of these great moments of her life.