Frans Pourbus the Younger

Frans Pourbus the younger (1569–1622) was a Flemish painter, son of Frans Pourbus the Elder and grandson of Pieter Pourbus. He was born in Antwerp and died in Paris. He is also referred to as "Frans II".

Pourbus worked for many of the highly influential people of his day, including the Brussels-based Spanish Regents of the Netherlands, the Duke of Mantua and Marie de' Medici, Queen of France. Works of his can be found in the Royal Collection, the Łazienki Palace, the Louvre, the Prado, the Rijksmuseum, the Royal College of Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and many other museums.^[1][2]

Style

Portrait of a man. Pourbus is noted for his depiction of costume, jewellry and draperies.

Pourbus was best known for portraits, but created some history paintings. He produced portraits that were pleasing to his patrons, but rarely providing his works with dramatic situations, or even landscape backgrounds.^[3] He is noted for his depiction of costume, jewellry and draperies (as in his portrait of Henry IV of France, below).^[4][5]

Patronage

Pourbus completed his apprenticeship in Antwerp in 1591.^[6] At the end of the 16th century, he worked for Archduke Albert and the Infanta Isabella in Brussels.^[5] On 27 June 1600, he was paid for a portrait of the Infanta (see below). This was subsequently presented to Anne of Denmark (wife of James VI and I) by the Ambassador of the Spanish Netherlands and this work remains in the Royal Collection.^[2]

In 1600, he was recruited as court painter in Mantua by Vincenzo Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua who met him when Gonzaga was on a visit to the Netherlands buying works of art.^[7] Within months of his appointment, Peter Paul Rubens arrived at the Mantuan court, but there is no evidence of hostility between the two.^[3] In 1609, Pourbus moved to Paris at the instigation of Marie de Médici (see her portrait below).^[5] It was here that he perfected his style.^[4] He worked as Marie de Médici's court painter until his death.

Death

He died in Paris and was buried on 19 February 1621/2.^[5] The exact date of his death is unknown.

The "Anne Boleyn" portrait

Among his works is a portrait of an Italian lady in the Pinacoteca Malaspina, Pavia that has been incorrectly identified as Anne Boleyn, second wife of Henry VIII of England (see below).^[8] This identification is a result of a later inscription.^[9] The portrait was in any case painted some years after Anne Boleyn's death in 1536.

Examples of his work

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  Louis XIII, King of France, with the Sash and Badge of the Order of Saint Esprit

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  Albertus van Habsburg (1559-1621),

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  Pourbus' portrait of an Italian lady incorrectly described as Anne Boleyn

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  A man aged 32 by Frans Pourbus the Younger

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  Vincenzo Gonzaga Duke of Mantua

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  Portrait of Francis Bacon, by Frans Pourbus the younger (1617), Palace on the Water in Warsaw.

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  Margarita Gonzaga Lorraine

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  Anne of Austria, 1616

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  Louis XIII of France by Pourbus the younger

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  Marie de' Medici,

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  Portrait of Maria de’ Medici

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  Isabella Clara Eugenia

A few further examples of his work can be found on Your Paintings.

References

1. ↑ Murray, P. & L. (1996), Dictionary of art and artists. Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-051300-0.
2. 1 2 The Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia at the Royal Collection.
3. 1 2 Oppenheimer, Paul (2002). Rubens: A Portrait. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 166. 
4. 1 2 Berger, Robert W (1999). Public Access to Art in Paris. Pennsylvania State University Press. p. 236. 
5. 1 2 3 4 Your Paintings
6. ↑ van Puyvelde, Leo; van Puyvelde, Thierry (1971). Flemish painting, the age of Rubens and Van Dyck. McGraw-Hill. p. 152. 
7. ↑ Furlotti, Barbara (2008). The Art of Mantua. Getty Publications. 
8. ↑ For example on page 44 of The Tudors, edited by Antonia Fraser
9. ↑ Web Gallery of Art

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