Rape of the Daughters of Leucippus

Oh!!!What are they doing????


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Rape of the Daughters of Leucippus

掠奪留基帕斯的女兒

Rape of the Daughters of Leucippus.

Peter Paul Rubens, 1617

Oil on canvas, 7 feet, 3 inches x 6 feet, 10 inches

Munich, Germany.

The favorite painter among the 17th-century European nobility was Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640), a master of the Baroque style.

In this painting, the two gods Castor and Pollux visit earth to take two mortal women as wives. The sisters’ energetic resistance to their kidnapping is emphasized in the twisted forms of their bodies. The furious motion of the picture leads upward, as one sister is lifted inevitably toward heaven. Rubens presents a striking contrast of textures in the translucent flesh of the women, the swarthy skin and hard, shell-like armor of the abductors, and the dappled horses. The clash of textures, the strong diagonal lines, and the writhing twisted forms create a nearly unbearable drama of Baroque violence and energy.

[Words Source: www.etsu.edu]

In the period of Barique and Rococo, the painting is so fancy and vivid. It is really a representation of exaggerated and agitated form of painting. I really like it because it seems that you are the witness of the rape, they seems that are really moving in front of your eyes. Beautiful drawing combined with moving drama.!!!

1. Pere Paul Rubens use the shadow and color to show the power and beauty of human' s muscle. The contrast of the skin color between the brother and princesses is so amazing which you couldn't find in Renaissance and Mannerism period.

2. The peaceful background stresses the powerful movement in front. The tension between is exaggerated by the contrast background.

Refferences and further readings:

The Rape of the Daughters of Leucippus - Rubens, 1618 from PC

陳彬彬, (2008), 從零開始圖解西洋名畫, 台灣:晨星出版有限公司