Peter Paul Rubens Research Paper

The Flemish baroque period in art took place during the 15th and 16th centuries in the North of Europe. One of the most popular and renowned artists of the time was Peter Paul Rubens, a Flemish artist, who spent many years in Italy studying the stylings of antiquity as well as more contemporary artists such as Caravaggio and Michelangelo. Peter Paul Rubens would go on to adopt the method of figura serpentinata from Michelangelo and the Northern European style of showing the clear appearance and texture of things into his works as well as Caravaggio’s use of bold, baroque, colors. Together, these methods formed the distinct and popular moethods of peter Paul Rubens, an artist whose robust and forceful style paved the way for the Rococo movement long after he died and work influenced many great artists of his time and future generations.
Peter Paul Rubens’s distinct style is what perpetuated his huge success in the 17th century. Rubens synthesized his approach to art, in part, through studying and imitating classics in Italy for eight years. Rubens believed that it was necessary for artists of his time to imitate ancient sculpture in order to pursue perfection in art. However, he did not believe that they should seek to accomplish perfection by imitating sculpture through
His methods of color and depiction were based on artists such as Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Titian, Caravaggio, and Pieter Brueghel the Elder. Rubens’s own ideas toward art theory and imitation were based on the conjecture of Aristotle. By taking elements of these different artists ad applying them in ways that would appeal to the masses to which he was trying to sell art, Rubens would change his style to fit the needs of the day. In studying so many artists spanning a wide array of genres in great detail, Rubens could synthesize new and original style that would garner great popularity