Rubens, Arrival (or Disembarkation) of Marie de Medici at Marseilles, Medici Cycle Video Lecture - Humanities/Arts

STEVEN ZUCKER:
We're in the Louvre,
and we're looking at
the monumental cycle
by Peter Paul Rubens
of Marie de Medici.
There are 24 canvases that were
painted by Rubens over a four
year period with the
help of his workshop.
Now, according to
the contract he
had to paint all the
figures, but his assistants
could certainly paint
in much of the rest.
This is a major commission by
one of the most powerful women
in Europe at this time, if
not the most powerful woman.
Her father was the
Duke of Tuscany,
and her husband was Henry
the IV, King of France.
This cycle is a commemoration
of the major events of her life.
Although, I have to
come out and say it.
It is absurd in its grandeur.
It is completely over the top.
This is a woman who had some
significant events in her life,
and certainly was extremely
wealthy, and extremely
powerful.
Nevertheless, Rubens clearly
had to struggle and bring
in every mythological
stage prop that he could in
order to complete a cycle
that was, we can only say,
dedicated to her ego.
In reality, she had an
interesting and problematic
life.
There were quite a
number of scandals,
but not least of which
was when her son, who
would be Louis the XIII, he was
too young to take the throne,
and so she was in control
of France as Regent.
But then when he finally came
to age she continued to reign.
She wouldn't let him
ascend the throne.
And when he was
finally old enough
and had the authority to be
able to say no, it's my turn,
he actually banished
her from France,
and he wouldn't allow her
to come back for years.
BETH HARRIS: And you
get the sense of why,
because she was obviously
very ambitious, very powerful.
And it might have been hard
to rule in her presence.
STEVEN ZUCKER: In her shadow.
BETH HARRIS: Yeah.
STEVEN ZUCKER: Let's take a
look at the ninth painting
in the series of 24.
It is when she is coming
to France from Italy.
It's called "The
Disembarkation at Marseilles."
And to get off a ship
is not usually seen
as a particularly
triumphant moment,
but Rubens is able to make
this seem as if it itself
is a triumphant moment.
BETH HARRIS: Right.
She is the queen,
victory above her
with trumpets
announcing her arrival.
STEVEN ZUCKER: Not just
one, but two trumpets.
BETH HARRIS: This
is the beginning
of her fulfillment, of her
destiny, as queen of France.
STEVEN ZUCKER: And we
see France personified
by a figure that seems to be
preparing to kneel before her
wearing a blue cape
of gold fleur de lis.
BETH HARRIS: Which is the symbol
of the royal family of France.
STEVEN ZUCKER: Behind her is a
knight of Malta that looks on,
this fabulous ship
just heavily wrought.
This sky in the
most Baroque fashion
is just swirling
and full of energy.
But that's nothing
compared with what
goes on below the gang plank.
BETH HARRIS: That's right.
We have three narayans
or sea nymphs below her,
along with the gods of
the sea, Writhe and Turn.
STEVEN ZUCKER: Almost as if they
are they the sea themselves.
It's as if their
bodies are waves.
There is just tremendous
energy and real beauty.
I mean, look at the colors
and the understanding
of the torsion of the body.
BETH HARRIS: The
drama of their pose
contrasts with the stateliness
and the grandeur of Marie de
Medici above.
STEVEN ZUCKER: You'll notice
that they are actually
assisting by holding the
ship fast to the land
so that she can walk easily.
BETH HARRIS: They enable.
The Pagan gods and goddesses
and figures of victory
are all there to service Marie
de Medici's destiny as queen.
And it's strange.
She's a little bit set back
compared to the sea nymphs who
really occupy more than
a third of the canvas.
STEVEN ZUCKER: OK,
so I think we've
made the point that it's
completely over the top.
But let's get really close
and take a look at the paint.
BETH HARRIS: OK.
STEVEN ZUCKER: So
the painting is
hung in such a
way that it starts
about four feet off the floor so
that we can only really look up
at the sea gods
and the narayans.
In Ruben's characteristic
handling of paint
there's a tremendous sense
of motion and energy.
I'm really struck by the
beard and the gray hair
of the sea god in
the foreground.
If you look directly
under him you
can see what look like
raw strokes of paint.
There's a kind of energy
and a kind of facility
that Ruben's has.
And then look at the
coloration of the narayans.
They are full of pinks, and
yellows, and greens, and blues.
BETH HARRIS: And look at all
the shortening that's going on.
There is a post that
one of the narayans
is holding onto and
tying a rope around.
It's moving into our space.
That sea god that you
talked about a moment ago
reaches his hand
back into space.
Everything in the bottom of
this canvas is in motion.
STEVEN ZUCKER: I'm
particularly taken
by the way in which their eyes
are absolutely alive with specs
of white paint, which become
this beautiful reflective
surface.
You also see that in the pearls
of the hair of the women.
And then you see it
in the drips of water
that come off their body.
Now, these 24 canvases
were, of course,
not originally
arrayed in the Louvre.
They were in the Palace of
Luxembourg Gardens, which was,
in fact, Marie de
Medici's own palace.
And that was built to
remind her of Florence.
BETH HARRIS: It's really fun
to go from one to the other
and read the story of these
great moments of her life.