Tourist Guide Rubenhuis Antwerp, Belgium

Antwerp was once a great center of the arts. It was in this Belgian city that Peter Paul Rubens had his home and his studio. He was also a collector of art and he displayed his art so that his students could be inspired as well as potential clients. This is where you will be visiting, this is the Rubenhuis.

Tickets are sold across the street from the house in a visitor center and you will also get your audio guide. You are going on a self guided tour. You cross the street and enter through the portico into the gardens of the house. The tour begins before you even enter the house. You can take pictures while you are outside in the garden but photography is not allowed inside the house. What you learn is that the garden pavilion does date from the time of the Master but the garden design has been recreated as it may have looked since no record exists.

In many ways Rubens house is typical of many 17th century Flemish homes. The kitchen has a open fireplace and there are tiles on the walls. There are wonderful paintings on display throughout the entire house. While you are in the dining room be on the lookout of a very fine self portrait. Unlike many other artists of the period there are very few self portraits of Rubens. His vision of himself is as a businessman rather than an artist, it was how he wanted to be perceived.

Rubens house was many things, it was a family home, it was an art an art school, a workshop, a museum and a pleasure gallery. Rubens was a collector and he modeled his on the great Italian collections of his time. He bought paintings that he liked but he also bought some works as an investment, he was after all an astute businessman. There was an inventory of his estate when he died and we have a very good idea of the type of works that he was collecting. Some of the oil sketches that he owned are very rare today because the original works are no longer extant. His home would have drawn many of his contemporaries to see his collection. He collection works on paper, canvas, wood and sculptures as well.

The house is filled with period furniture, none of it original to the house. After Rubens death his furniture was sold. What you will see that is original is the paintings of his grandparents. This is one of the amazing moments during a visit here, to see these portraits from the 16th century.

The tour finishes in the workshop, where there are several very fine paintings by Rubens and some of his very talented students. More than 2,500 works were produced in over 40 years in this workshop making Rubens one of the most prolific artists ever. There is a nice gift shop across the street near the ticket office.

A visit to Rubenhuis is a highlight of any visit to Antwerp. It isn't just about getting o know the man behind the artist but also about seeing how a family would have lived in 17th century Flanders.