Tag: Jordaens

Old and new go hand in hand

The Hoogstraat is a very lively shopping street where you will not find any of the international brands, but only local shops, eat houses and bars. Jacques Jordaens, one of the great baroque painters of the city was born here in the house which now bears the number 13, right next to one of the entrances to the Vlaaikensgang, a relict of sixteenth century Antwerp.

One of the antique shops in the Kloosterstraat

One of the eldest buildings in the Hoogstraat is situated right next to St-Jansvliet. It is the Saint-Julian’s Hospital or guesthouse. Pilgrims on their way to Compostella could stay there overnight and in fact, they still can, although the guest house is now situated on St-Jansvliet and offers a bit more comfort than the old building. The old chapel of the guesthouse today houses the Black Panther, one of the most prestigious art galleries in town presenting a wide range of contemporary artists from home and abroad.

And while you’re at it, if you continue walking south, you enter the Kloosterstraat. Here, for something like half a mile, you will find a lot of antique and vintage shops, one next to the other, with of course a coffe house, restaurant or bar in between.

Two more reasons to visit Rubens’ House

Thanks to a gift by the King Bauduin Foundation, the Rubens’ House has acquired two more masterworks. One is a painting by Van Dijck, the other a self portrait by Jordaens, two contemporaries of Rubens and in the case of Van Dijck also a close co-worker and a personal friend.

Van Dijck’s painting is one of a set representing the apostles. In this case it is Matthew, the one who joined the apostles to bring the number to twelve again after Judas’ suicide.

Jordaens’ selfportrait is a copy of an existing self portrait (the original is in Neuburg on the Danube, Germany) by a pupil of Jordaens on which Jordaens himself has co-operated.

The two paintings will be on display on the Bafra event in Brussels next week, afterwards the Royal Arts Institute is going to study the paintings after which they will on exhibit again in Rubens’ House.

Photo: KIK-IRPA

Source: GVA

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