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Belvedere torso

Rubens made this drawing of the Belvedere Torso during his long-term stay in Italy.

A keen interest in archaeology

Rubens lived in Italy from 1600 until 1608. He used his years in Rome to fully understand the art of Antiquity, drawing famous Roman statues, which he also used as documentation for his paintings. The Belvedere Torso is a marble sculpture from the first century B.C. It is exhibited in the Belvedere behind the Vatican in Rome.

Rubens copied the statue and the Greek inscription in great detail, proof that he took a keen interest in archaeology. Early on in his career, Rubens used the motif of a resting athlete in his paintings. Rubens also collected the drawings of older masters, in addition to creating his own.

 

Creative interventions

Now and then Rubens enjoyed retouching the drawings of old masters in his collection. He used these "creative interventions" to test his own ideas and techniques on these drawings. At times he also employed these drawings as study materials for the training of the assistants in his studio.