17th-Century Antwerp artists’ studio practice: Rubens and his circle: an interdisciplinary approach in technical art history

Gattringer, Christa (2014) 17th-Century Antwerp artists’ studio practice: Rubens and his circle: an interdisciplinary approach in technical art history. PhD thesis, University of Glasgow.

Abstract

Early 17th-century Antwerp, despite political and religious troubles, was a thriving European art centre and home of such renowned artists as Peter Paul Rubens and other painters of his circle, like Jan Brueghel I, Frans Snyders, Anthony van Dyck and Hendrick van Balen. This interdisciplinary thesis in Technical Art History, after a general introduction to this specific art scene, looks at how specific aspects of their studio practice, such as collaborations within and outside their studios or the many copies and versions of their paintings, found manifestation in their works but also in their theoretical concepts. For this an in-depth study and examination of c.20 paintings from mainly Scottish collections (National Galleries of Scotland Edinburgh, Glasgow Museums, Hunterian Art Gallery of the University of Glasgow, Talbot Rice Gallery of the University of Edinburgh, Hopetoun House South Queensferry) was conducted, using detailed photography, multispectral imaging, tracings, dendrochronology, polarised light microscopy and SEM- EDX-analysis of paint samples in cross-sections. The technical examination and analysis, informed by art historical research, significantly aided the answering of questions regarding these paintings’ materials and techniques, as well as they helped to authenticate sometimes contested authorship and date. Four main chapters discuss Frans Snyders’ studio practice focussing on reappearing motifs, Rubens’ tronies, Jan Brueghel’s minute staffage figures in collaborative works, as well as Rubens’ and Brueghel’s painting Nature Adorned by the Graces. An own chapter critically discusses the test results of the application of Stable Lead Isotope Analysis on paint samples, which were carried out at the Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre (SUERC).

• Item Type: Thesis (PhD)
• Qualification Level: Doctoral
• Additional Information: Due to copyright restrictions the full text of this thesis cannot be made available online. Access to the printed version is available once any embargo period has expired.
• Keywords: Early 17th-century, Antwerp, studio practice, Technical Art History, Peter Paul Rubens, Jan Brueghel I, Frans Snyders, Paul de Vos, Jan Fyt, Anthony van Dyck, Hendrick van Balen, painting, collaborations, copies and versions, tronies, staffage, National Galleries of Scotland Edinburgh, Glasgow Museums, Hunterian Art Gallery of the University of Glasgow, Talbot Rice Gallery of the University of Edinburgh, Hopetoun House South Queensferry, multispectral imaging, tracings, dendrochronology, polarised light microscopy, SEM-EDX-analysis, cross-sections, Stable Lead Isotope Analysis, Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre (SUERC)
• Subjects: N Fine Arts > NC Drawing Design Illustration; N Fine Arts > ND Painting; N Fine Arts > NE Print media
• Colleges/Schools: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Culture and Creative Arts > History of Art
• Supervisor's Name: Hermens, Dr Erma, Ellam, Prof. Rob and Fallick, Prof. Tony
• Date of Award: 2014
• Embargo Date: 27 April 2024
• Depositing User: Ms Christa Gattringer
• Unique ID: glathesis:2014-5135
• Copyright: Copyright of this thesis is held by the author.
• Date Deposited: 23 May 2014 13:15
• Last Modified: 29 Apr 2021 13:02
• URI: https://theses.gla.ac.uk/id/eprint/5135