Judgment of Paris Peter Paul Rubens, 1639

Peter Paul Rubens grew up learning from the best, and he is a Flemish painter and considered on of the most important in the 17th century. Studying in Italy and learning contemporary styles from greats such as Caravaggio, he combined "bold brushwork and luminous color" to bring together his style of "animated and exuberantly sensuous" scenes. Ruben's was known to have combined aspects from all of these styles creating a balance between Northern and Flemish art and introducing some of that to Italy. 

The Myth of this piece started with a golden apple. One the three goddesses, Athena, Hera and Aphrodite, thought the apple belonged to the prettiest of them all. They quarreled over who may be the fairest, and no one outside of the three dared make a decision themselves. Zeus, then found Paris, son of Priam who was the king of Troy, and had the prince choose one the three. The goddesses appeared to Paris naked and as he carefully inspected the women,  each offered a gift to him: Athena offered Paris wisdom in skill and war, Hera said she would make him king of Europe and Asia, and Helen using her powers, offered Paris the most beautiful mortal woman, Helen of Sparta. Paris chose Helen, wife to king Menelaus, and awarded Helen with the apple.

This myth awarded painters with the opportunity to create scenes of beauty contests and devine sexuality. It is controversial as to why the three goddesses showed to this beauty pageant naked. But nonetheless, Ruben's took advantage of this scene twice over, and created two Judgement of Paris' one in 1625 and this one in 1639. I chose the latter because I believe it fully demonstrates the characteristics of his work as I previously described. The colors, bold details, and teasingly sexuality of this piece makes the earlier piece look like a few naked people standing around. I feel the intensity of this moment form the Paris' thoughts to the goddesses' desire for the apple. Each goddess standing before Paris posing with Rubens beautiful use of the coverings, to the dog curiously onlooking all brings this scene together to create a work that would define Rubens career.