The Judgment of Paris
Artist/Maker
Jacob Jordaens
(Flanders, 1593-1678)
Dateca. 1620-1625
Mediumoil on canvas
DimensionsSight: 34 1/2 x 44 1/2 in. (87.6 x 113 cm)
Framed: 48 x 59 x 3 1/2 in. (121.9 x 149.9 x 8.9 cm)
Framed: 48 x 59 x 3 1/2 in. (121.9 x 149.9 x 8.9 cm)
ClassificationsVisual Works
Credit LineGift of The Samuel H. Kress Foundation
Terms
Object number61.046.000
DescriptionLike his great Flemish contemporary, Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640), Jordaens developed a highly naturalistic Baroque style characterized by a dynamic mode of presentation, a painterly approach to form, vivid coloring, and the rich effects of texture. However, in contrast with Ruben’s reliance on idealized, classicizing figures, Jordaens generally used native, commonplace models, most often members of his own family. Here, for example, the three nude goddesses – Aphrodite (to the right of Paris), Hera (in the center), and Athena (shown from the back) – as well as the female personification of Abundance holding aloft a larger cornucopia, are believed to be representations of Jordaens’s young wife, the daughter of his former teacher, Adam van Noort. Painted early in his career, during the period when Jordaens worked as an associate in Rubens’s workshop, The Judgment of Paris illustrates the important moment in classical history when the shepherd Paris, called upon by Zeus to decide who among three goddesses was to receive the golden apple inscribed “for the fairest,” awarded the fruit to Aphrodite, thereby precipitating the Trojan War.On View
On viewCollections
