Today we honour Anthony van Dyck, who died #onthisday in 1641.
Long regarded as two of Van Dyck’s finest works, these portraits show Marie de Raet (left) and Philippe Le Roy (right), the illegitimate grandson of a successful Antwerp manufacturer.
By 1630, Le Roy had become independently rich enough to purchase the small towns of Eels and Ravel, earning him the title ‘Lord of Ravels’. He likely commissioned these grand portraits from van Dyck to celebrate his betrothal to Marie de Raet, the sixteen-year-old daughter of an Antwerp lord and almoner.
The couple are shown in their splendid finery, reflecting the wealth and taste of 17th-century nobility. Dressed in rich black fabrics and ornate white lace, they wear the latest fashions. Marie’s pearls symbolise purity, and she holds an extravagant feather fan. Her gentle expression, in contrast to her husband’s confidence, conveys innocence and vulnerability.
See them together in our Great Gallery.
Anthony van Dyck, Marie de Raet (detail), 1631
Anthony van Dyck, Philippe Le Roy (detail), 1630
Long regarded as two of Van Dyck’s finest works, these portraits show Marie de Raet (left) and Philippe Le Roy (right), the illegitimate grandson of a successful Antwerp manufacturer.
By 1630, Le Roy had become independently rich enough to purchase the small towns of Eels and Ravel, earning him the title ‘Lord of Ravels’. He likely commissioned these grand portraits from van Dyck to celebrate his betrothal to Marie de Raet, the sixteen-year-old daughter of an Antwerp lord and almoner.
The couple are shown in their splendid finery, reflecting the wealth and taste of 17th-century nobility. Dressed in rich black fabrics and ornate white lace, they wear the latest fashions. Marie’s pearls symbolise purity, and she holds an extravagant feather fan. Her gentle expression, in contrast to her husband’s confidence, conveys innocence and vulnerability.
See them together in our Great Gallery.
Anthony van Dyck, Marie de Raet (detail), 1631
Anthony van Dyck, Philippe Le Roy (detail), 1630
