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Now, onto Peter Paul Rubens' saint paintings. You may be wondering or not, who is St. Catherine getting betrothed to. Entering a monastery was like a wedding. However, you married God instead of a man of flesh and blood. Here the saints are coming to see St. Catherine getting  Betrothed  to God. Even, the Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus came to see her. She is the maiden kneeling before baby Jesus.

St. Jerome is always painted in a meditating pose. It seems that lions and cherubs where always hanging out in his hermitage. He is barefooted to show his humility. His red cloak is similar to those worn by Greek philosophers. On the table we see an hourglass. He is meditating on the end of time. The open book and pencil show that he will write down whatever he concludes. 

In this painting, several angels have come to St. Sebastian's aid. They are taking out the arrows and undoing his binds. Next to him, they brought his armor. For Rubens' purposes, the armor was a knight's armor.

The original of this painting has yet to be discovered  In any case, St. Walburga was an infamous nun who traveled with her sisters and her brother to Evangelize the Pagan Germans. On her way to Germany a terrible storm fell. She prayed to God to Quell the storm and he answered her prayer. This is the moment when St. Waburga performed her miracle. You got to admit that this is one pretty cool painting. The waves are really cool.

We are all familiar with Stigmata. In any case, I find it pretty interesting how St. Francis helper cannot look directly at the Angel. However, since St. Francis is the chosen one, he can look directly at the angel's splendor. The skulls are there for contemplation purposes. 

In this painting, St. Augustine has just discovered a curious little boy by the Sea. He was playing with shells by the sea. I think that is baby Jesus. He is about to pick up the lord. Meanwhile, a cherub is holding his stick, hat and incense.

Here is an interesting gathering of Saints. As it is to be expected of Rubens, he made the female saint the centerpiece of this painting. Her blonde hair and crown looks really pretty. The cherubs crowning of this saint makes for a lovely detail.

 The true scene is happening in the center. On the side, we see the patrons who contributed to the church. Since they donated a lot, they got included in this miracle scene. As we all see, the Saint lady is receiving a priest's cloak.

This is one extremely pretty Saints painting. I like how the Saint is being crowned by the Virgin Mary. Around both maidens, there are other ladies. Over then, there are little cherubs bringing more flower crowns. The background is kinda like those niches where you place statues.  

Well, here we see St. Francis taking his last communion. He is so weak that all the other monks must support him. Its a very emotional scene. Then again, watching someone die is never pretty, even if that person is a saint.

This saint did not have a pretty death. Its not everyday an angry mob tears you limb from limb. It pretty gory how one of the guys is about to feed the Saint's tongue to a dog. Then again, part of the vogue of Catholicism is martyrdom. You know, dying for your religion. It gave more legitimacy one's religion. While they are slaying the Saint, a Legion of angels arrived to slay the evil doers.

Now, here is a saint that took the whole Widows and Orphans thing to heart. In the old days, they represented the poorest of the poor. They were the ones who had no one to turn to. Even today, the widows and the orphans are still oppressed. One has salvation guaranteed if one takes care of Widows and Orphans. Almost all the prophets that have gone by stood up for the Widows and the Orphans. So, there you have it. 

Back to Peter Paul Rubens, in this painting we see St. John the Baptist's infamous beheading. The beheading has just taken place. You can see the blood drip from his wound. Salome is nearby being offered the head. One of her maids is shocked. The old hag is giving a sneer toward Salome. Meanwhile, the executioner is sheathing his blade. What is awesome is the pose of the hands of St. John. They seem to be frozen in pain. As for the head, it looks peaceful. The agony is finally over.

Here is a very elaborate conversion of St. Paul. Like we all know, Jesus knocked him off his high horse. Its pretty cool the shocked reaction of St. Paul's troops. They where in the middle of hunting some Christians when God intervened. The humans don't get what's going on. However, the horses are getting spooked. They feel God's presence and are afraid.

Thinking about it, this is more of a Virgin Mary kind of painting. Basically, a legion of cherubs is flying over the hair the image of the virgin. Around them, the entire heavenly court of angels are adoring the Virgin. Well, she is the mother of God and we all love our mothers.

You can tell that someone has been blessed by the lord when they start bringing people to life. Here St. Francis has just revived someone. You can see him at the bottom of the painting. His sister, wife and mother are tending to him. Behind them, we see a mother bringing to the Saint her dead baby. You can tell that he is dead because of his blueish hue. There is not a shadow of a doubt that the lil baby is dead.

This painting is rather simple. Basically, we see St. Peter with the keys of heaven. Really, any weirdo could recognize this guy. Then again, the whole Mannerism ambiguity was thrown out the window in the Baroque period. Now, art was accessible to the plebeians.

This dragon battle looks really cool. It is a wonder how Rubens designed this beast. Behind the saint, we see a lady in distress. You can't have a dragon battle without a lady in the scene. 

I bet this hermit is seriously reconsidering his celibacy. I am not too familiar of the content of this painting. However, it does show the strain that was put on all the clergy who were forced into celibacy. Yeah, that was a new development. It was not mandatory, until recently. I think Catholicism could go back to being hilarious if they toned down the whole celibacy thing.

In this painting, we see St. Thomas about to be slain by an angry roman mob. A dagger is about to strike his neck. It seems they want to crucify him. His gaze is toward the cute little cherubs. They are giving him a sacred palm and a crown of Victory. Ironically, that Victory crown is a Greek thing. 

St. Ignatius was the founding father of the Jesuits. They are the best priestly order of the Catholic church. Today, they are mostly known for their super cool schools. They pride themselves in their knowledge of science, math, astronomy, ect. In a nutshell, they are the educated priestly order. In this painting, the father is curing the sick or bringing dead people back to life.

Here is the second version of the painting featuring these same saints. He had to remake it because the patrons did not want St. Domitilla to be the center of attention. What a real pity. She still came out pretty cute. She alone looks at the viewer. 

Well, here is the last painting, for now. Basically, we see St. Jerome. He is sporting a Cardinal attire. You know, nothing too far out there. This painting has quite the lose brushstroke. I guess it was made in his later part of life. I hope that I humored you, even a lil bit. Ah, today is such a boring slow day.

Now, we will focus on the Jesus painting. The Tribute money piece is very important. Basically, Jesus is telling his followers that humans must pay their taxes. Give to Caesar, what belongs to Caesar. All who are listening are in awe. It is interesting to note how the Pharisees look old, and Jesus very young. Well, he was popular for having wisdom beyond his years. This piece is still relevant, even today. Expanding its meaning, one can apply this to everything. We have duties to God and to society. According to Jesus, we must do right by both. 

Whenever, Jesus shows up dressed as above, it means that we are looking at the Resurrected Jesus.  In this painting, he is stepping over death and sin. Death is the skeleton and sin is the snake.  By his right hand, we see the pit of hell. He went there and defeated death and Sin. That must have been one hell of a battle. It took him 3 days to win. It certainly gives me a lot of food for thought. Around him, we see some Cherubs glorifying him.

Originally, Mary Magdalene had seen the resurrected Jesus alone. This did not humor Luke the Evangelist. To give legitimacy to her vision, he added several male apostles. For our purposes, I am going to pretend that I see just Jesus and Mary Magdalene. Basically, she wanted to embrace Jesus. However, he told her not to touch him because he was in his spirit form. She feels herself unworthy of being in his presence. Like Moses, she is content to just knowing that he is before her. Her devotional pose is quite delicate and pretty.

This painting is in black and white because the original has disappeared. Basically, we see Jesus being baptized by his cousin. The angels are holding his robes for him. On the right of them, other people are getting undressed. They are simply bathing like regular folks. The tree creates a divide that separates the sacred from the profane. It is interesting food for thoughts.

I just noticed something weird behind Mary Magdalene. There is a creepy demon face and a hand holding a knife. What the hell? The other people in the painting are Mary Martha, the Beloved Apostle and a guy whose name alludes me. It is cute how those closest to Jesus face are looking at him. It is like they cannot believe that he his dead. As for Mary Magdalene, she is in the traditional Greek depiction for deep , unrepresentable sorrow. Anyone in a pose like hers, is more depressed than the rest. It is cool how Jesus' mouth is stuck in his last cry of anguish. I find it cool how they show the two strong men carrying Jesus. Visually, it shows how even strong men succumb to death.

This next painting is kinda weird. For Starters, Joseph did not show up in the bible after the childhood of Jesus stories. I think the guy in Red is the beloved Apostle. Mary Magdalene is always in all the entombment scenes. I think she is the red head. As for the saint, I assume that it is the pretty blonde maiden. She is wearing the crown of thorns and she holds Jesus' hand. What I like best are the drawings in Jesus Tomb. It was part of the roman tradition to decorate coffins. In one side, we see an angel. In the other, we see lambs being offered as a sacrifice. These elements are meant to give us the idea that Jesus was the Lamb of God.  The one who was sacrificed for our sins.  

This is a triptych or a 3 panel painting. It was not unusual to paint the outside panels as well. You know, to give people something to look at when the painting was close. I truly did like the outside decoration of this painting. Here we see some angel statues that are about to open the painting. I think it is a pretty original painting. The angels are in classical Greek contraposto poses. They are also really pumped up. 

This is the Resurrection triptych opened. Inside we see Jesus getting out of his sepulcher. The onlookers are shocked and afraid. He seems to be radiating his own unique light. Its more subtle because it is natural, super natural light. The horns of light is a nice detail. On the right, we see the Virgin Mary. On the left, we see John the Baptist. For a decoration, they work pretty well.

This Supper at Emmaus is identical to Caravaggio's supper. The figures are lined up in a similar fashion. Like the other version, only Jesus' followers where able to recognize him. It is pretty cute how one is getting up, trying to keep his bearing. The one to the right cannot believe his eyes. The follower to the left has his eyes on the skies, like Jesus. It is a pretty neat painting. It also has the same chiaroscuro of Caravaggio's painting. 

This Calvary painting is quite different from its predecessors. Bellow, we see the two guys who are going to be cruxified along Jesus. Beside Jesus we see his mother. She wants to go help him. However, a soldier put a sword on her chest to keep her back. It's visually showing how Jesus suffering felt like a sword stabbed the Virgin Mary's heart. Beside her, we see the women of Jerusalem. They are all weeping for Jesus. Interesting enough, I also see their children. Most of the ones who saw Jesus off where the women. All his male followers kinda split. Well, the Romans never took chicks seriously. Thus, they did not mind much their presence in this terrible execution.

 I find this painting to be extremely cute. Baby Jesus, with Baby John the Baptist and more baby angels. They have a still life close to them. They all looks really cute. One of the angels is holding the lamb of God. Overall, this painting makes me smile.

Aside from the scene, there is another important detail about this painting I wish to mention. Many imagine that the Pharisees hated Jesus. However, that did not stop them from inviting him to parties. Jesus had a knack for being the center of attention. Thus, the Pharisees invited him out to eat often to hear what he would say. This is one of such scenes. Like we all know, a Sinner was perfuming his feet. She was performing this act of devotion toward the lord. She wished for her sins to be forgiven. Obviously, the hosts of the house got annoyed. However,  Jesus stood up for the lady. It is cool the reaction of the Pharisees. They are leaning over to hear better. Its like they are pushing Jesus' bottoms for their own amusement. Only, Peter and some of the servant girls are looking at the sinner. It is interesting food for thought. This perfume in specific was placed on the dead. This had a great significance for Jesus because of the fate that was in store for him. The Pharisees got offended because they thought that the girl was wishing for Jesus to die or something. Needless to say, she was far wiser than the elders.

We all know of the Incredulity of St. Thomas. You remember, he doubted that Jesus was there in the flesh. Jesus told him to touch his wounds. He was annoyed at Thomas. He said his faith was weaker because he had seen and touched the resurrected lord. On the sides, we see the sponsors for the creation of this painting. Since they paid for the piece, they got included in the miracle.

This last supper is different from the usual last suppers. Usually, they have the apostles in a long horizontal table. This time they are all in a circle around Jesus. I think Judas is the guy looking at the viewer. I can tell because the dog is pointing at him. Thus, we get a good idea of who is Judas. The guy without a bear is the beloved apostle. He was the youngest of the crew. The scenery is like a Greek temple. The source of light are a few candles here and there. Lets just wrap things up.

You know, I should have placed this one among the Saint paintings. However, for thematic purposes I placed it in this blog. Basically, the saint has had a vision of the Crucified Christ. His wound look fresh as he bleeds to death. The saint looks shock at seeing the lord in such a manner. This vision reminded the saint of the sacrificed made by God. God or no God, this story has a great significance. During the time of the Romans, innocents used to be put to death to maintain peace. Usually, these innocents where people who were not Romans. Even today,  almost all the innocents sent to jail are the marginalized. Thus, killing the innocent is nothing new. Overall, this painting gives us a lot to think about.

I like how Rubens did his homework. Usually, depending on the severity of one's crime is the type of crucifixion one obtained. I like the difference between Jesus and the Two. The guy who has just stabbed Jesus' heart is Longinus. From his wound, sprouted water. It is cute how Mary Magdalene is hugging the cross. She is asking the Roman soldier to show mercy. The problem is that Roman soldiers are trained to be cruel, merciless and obedient. On the bottom right of the painting, we see the Virgin Mary, the Beloved Apostle and Martha. They each have different grieving expression. Overall, this painting is really depressing to look at. I find it interesting the Realism of this painting. Jesus is held straight by some ropes, just like the other guys. There are even ladders and horses that aid these soldiers in their macabre execution.

This is a detail from the Decent of the Cross painting. Here we get a good look at the faces of Martha and Mary Magdalene. One looks serious, the other is heartbroken. Its pretty neat the contrast of colors between the dead Jesus and the live maidens. The shadow of death is already visible. There is no doubt that Jesus is dead.

Here is the rest of the painting. All the characters are dressed like contemporary baroque people. It is interesting how they are all trying not to drop the body. It takes a lot of people to carry Christ to the ground. The one who is taking most of the weight of the dead body is the Beloved Apostle. He really did love his master. He was the only male apostle that did not split. It is possible that he did not feel himself in danger because he was beardless. Meaning that he was only a teenager, a kid. Thus, the Roman legionaries did not take him seriously, like the female followers of Jesus. Another thing interesting to note is on the bottom right of the painting. A rock is holding the sign that said Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jews. That was the reason he was being executed. In the roman world, there can only be one King, Caesar. Aside from the note, we see the crown of thorns and the nails. I think that is just about everything worth mentioning about this painting.

In the side panels, we see scenes of the early life of Jesus. On the left, Mary is hearing the Hail Mary from Martha. Bellow the bridge, we see a peacock. It stands for marriage. On the right panel, we see Jesus circumcision. The priest is sad that he will not live to see Jesus become the messiah.

Like the title states, here we see all the Crucifixion folks lamenting Christ. They are already at the sepulcher. Jesus' mother is closing his eyes. There are a lot of other maidens wearing black, lamenting Christ. Again, in the foreground we see the bowl with the nails and the crown of thorns.

By now, we are all familiar with the raising of the Cross theme. This one in specific is among Rubens most famous painting. It is really quite dramatic. It looks amassing the amount of men that are needed to raise Christ. On the right, we see Longinus leading his soldiers. On the left, we see the Daughters of Jerusalem, the Virgin Mary, The beloved Apostle, Martha and Mary Magdalene. It is interesting to note the Virgin Mary's composure. Originally, they used to painting her fainting. However, the Catholics grew to appreciate her when the Protestants made her a mere woman. They did not appreciate that the Virgin Mary was not considered the Queen of heaven.

On the right, I see the Romans. The scene in this painting is where Jesus tells the Beloved Apostle that the Virgin Mary was now his mother. He told him to take care of her. Bellow, Mary Magdalene is kissing his feet. This alludes to the first time they met. The Catholic Church imagines that the sinner of the dinner part at the house of the Pharisees was Mary Magdalene. Whether that is true or not, is an matter worth contesting.

In this Holy Trinity, God is showing what he sacrificed for mankind. He is presenting his dead son to the sinners. He gave his only begotten son for the salvation of mankind. Above God, we see the Holy Ghost in the form of the Dove. The angels are holding the nails, the Lance of Longinus, the Crown of thorns and the whip.

In this painting, we see the Virgin Mary. She is getting educated on the good book. Above her, a cherub is crowning her. This painting represents the sorta education that all pure maidens must aspire to obtain. If you notice, the Virgin Mary is dressed like a regular baroque lady. Thus, all who see her will associate with her.

In this painting, we see the Adoration of the Shepherds. Here we see baby Jesus glowing. He is the main source of light in this painting. Above them, we see angels flying about. This strong chiaroscuro is pretty neat. If you noticed, all the people are dressed like regular baroque folks. There is also a midwife in the middle of the painting. Its interesting food for thought, and a lovely detail.

In this painting, we see the Adoration of the Magi. Rubens included a whole series of servants. Every king needs its army of vassals. The Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus are the two most prominent figures in the painting. Joseph is sorta disappearing into the background. However, 3/4 of the painting is covered by the Magi and their servants. The camels and the cow looks realistic. The guy in the center of the painting showed up in a different portrait.

We all know that Jesus was 100% Jew. Thus, this painting shows his circumcision. It is being performed by Joseph. The Virgin Mary is averting her eyes. She cannot bear seeing her poor baby bleed. Beside her, two maidens are looking at some Cherubs. The Priest reading the Torah is also gazing at the angels. Thus, we have a healthy blend of the heavenly and the mundane. This is a very unusual painting. Up until now, no one had ever painted the Circumcision of Christ. It gives one a lot of food for thought.

Here is another lovely Adoration of the Magi painting. Only the Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus has a discrete halo. All the figures are dressed like baroque weirdoes. In this version, there are no angels. It is more down to earth.

Here is another adoration of the shepherds. They came in while the Virgin Mary was feeding Baby Jesus. The cherubs joined the scene because they guided the shepherds to the Holy Family. The interior of the barn is pretty neat.

The angel looks extremely pretty. His blonde hair seems to be swirling. He contrasts well with the human beauty of the Virgin Mary. She is always painted with black hair. Above her, we see some angels and the holy ghost. The holy ghost is Jesus' father. Together with the cherubs, they are giving life to Baby Jesus. As it is usual, the Virgin Mary was visited by the angel during her studies of the Bible. She represents the ideal pious lady.

This is a traditional Assumption painting. Basically, the Virgin Mary is rising to heaven, after death. The apostles are all shocked. They are removing the rock from her tomb to make certain that her body is gone. After Jesus left, the Virgin Mary did not take long to join him. Life without Jesus was painful to her. She did not recover from the pain she felt as she watched the crucifixion. Jesus felt bad for his mother and thus took her to heaven to make her a queen. Now, the Virgin Mary is the Queen of Heaven. 

Above, we see the Virgin Mary in her Apocalypse form. She is wearing her crown of stars. She is stepping on the moon.  She is also killing the snake. Its cool how the devil is holding an apple with a bite mark. He represents the original sin. Beside her she has two cherubs. One is holding an olive branch. The other has a laurel crown.

 Well, we see the patrons in the borders. As for the saint, he is kissing a mantle given to him by the Virgin. Around the Virgin, we see her attendants. All but the Virgin are dressed like regular baroque weirdoes.

Here we have another Assumption of the Virgin. All of Jesus followers are checking her empty tomb. There is a healthy blend of historical figures and baroque people. I hope that you liked this baroque painting. Well, I am done with this Virgin Mary blog. The next Rubens blog is going to be the last one.

This is the last Peter Paul Rubens blog. Man, it took forever to finish. The problem was that he was too good of a painting. Anyhow, here we have a sweet Holy Family painting. St. Anne is the Virgin Mary's mother. She is looking at her grandson, Baby Jesus. They all look cute looking at the sleeping baby. Well, we all like to look at sleeping babies.

In this painting, the Madonna and child are talking with some rich guys. These people certainly paid a lot for this painting. The models of the Madonna and child look extremely pretty. Both are cute darlings.   

St. Elizabeth is the mother of John the Baptist. She was the Virgin Mary's cousin. As it was common back then, both maidens are introducing their babies to one another. John the Baptist is the baby sitting on the animal pelt. Jesus is with his mother Mary. He is the one standing. Both came out looking very cute.  

Here is the last Peter Paul Rubens painting. Close to the foreground, we see a still life. The Virgin Mary is reading the Bible. On the meantime, she is feeding her Baby. He too is looking at the Bible. Again, we see the Virgin Mary in a Garden of Roses. 5 stars for Peter Paul Rubens. Well, I am finally finished reviewing Peter Paul Rubens. That took forever. Then again, I got kinda side tracked with all those game review. Plus, bro kept bothering with the Olympics and the Presidential Election blogs. Who has time to write about Rubens with so many distractions. I am still thinking about the next artist that I am going to Review.