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Sir Anthony van Dyck Flemish, 1599 - 1641 Isabella Brant, 1621 oil on canvas, 153 x 120 cm (60 1/4 x 47 1/4 in.) Andrew W. Mellon Collection 1937.1.47 |
Object 2 of 15
Isabella Brant depicts the first wife of Peter Paul Rubens. Just before Van Dyck left Rubens' studio for Italy, he presented this portrait to his mentor as a gift. The setting is the Italianate garden entrance to Rubens' mansion, an Antwerp landmark designed by the owner himself as one of northern Europe's first classically styled structures. In this affectionate portrait, Van Dyck moved a statue of Minerva to an imaginary position behind Isabella's right shoulder, suggesting a link between his beloved sitter and the classical goddess of wisdom. Isabella Brant died in 1626.
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