The Three Graces
by Peter Paul Rubens, 1639
StyleBaroque
Artwork Details
Details
- Year
- 1639
- Medium
- Oil on oak panel
- Size
- 221 cm × 181 cm (87 × 71.3 in)
Cite or Embed This Work
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Peter Paul Rubens painted The Three Graces around 1639, near the end of his life. The three goddesses, daughters of Zeus, represent beauty, charm, and joy. They embrace in an eternal dance, their voluptuous bodies glowing against a garden landscape. Rubens modeled the central figure on his young wife, Hélène Fourment.
The fleshy, celebrated bodies epitomize what became known as "Rubenesque." These are not idealized classical nudes but warm, real women with dimpled flesh and soft bellies. A fountain streams into a basin, a cornucopia spills fruit, and garlands suggest eternal spring and abundance.
The Prado displays this painting as the culmination of Rubens's lifelong celebration of female beauty.
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About The Three Graces
Aglaea, Euphrosyne, and Thalia, goddesses of beauty, mirth, and abundance. They often attended Aphrodite and represented life's pleasures This work dates to 1639.
The term describes full-figured female beauty as Rubens portrayed it: voluptuous, sensual, and warmly fleshed.
At the Museo del Prado. Rubens painted it on oak panel, measuring 221 × 181 cm, located in Madrid, Spain The oil on oak panel work is part of their permanent collection.
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