Rubens, Helena Fourment (1614–1673), and Their Son Frans (1633–1678)

The painting’s story and details

Around 1635 Rubens painted himself with Helena Fourment and their young son Frans. The family walks in an idealised version of the garden at the artist’s Antwerp home. Rubens holds his wife’s hand while the child reaches upwards. The large canvas records an intimate encounter while presenting a prosperous household.

The couple’s hands meet against dark clothing. Helena’s young skin is lighter; Rubens’s hand looks more weathered. Thirty-seven years separated them. He retains that difference in the portrait while their pose joins them as an informal couple.

Frans wears a yellow dress and a hat. Young boys also wore dresses at the time, so the garment does not identify the child as a girl. A blue ribbon crosses his chest. Below the adults, he reaches a hand towards his mother.

A leather strap crosses Rubens’s shoulder. It refers to a nobleman’s right to carry a sword. Such attributes communicated status in formal portraiture without an explanatory inscription. Here that sign of nobility appears within a family walk.

White lace around Helena’s face stands out against black fabric. Lower down, she holds a feather fan. Rubens distinguishes costly materials through their responses to light: lustrous cloth, fine lace and soft feathers. Elegance has a tangible material cost here.

A parrot appears near the fountain above the family, with flowers and sculpture behind them. This is a cultivated garden that required labour. According to the Rubenshuis, gardeners maintained the grounds. Alongside family life, the garden accommodated meetings with patrons.

Rubens bought the property in 1610 with his first wife, Isabella Brant. He remodelled the house with Italian palaces in mind and moved in during 1615. By the time of this family portrait, the property combined a studio, reception rooms and a garden. His professional success had taken architectural form.