Making Discoveries: I am Van Dyck

Van Dyck clearly borrows a great deal from Rubens. The composition is taken directly from Rubens painting of the same subject (see previous slide).

Van Dyck's father was a silk merchant, and the artist was fascinated by fabrics. The fabric used here was probably a studio prop, since it appears in other paintings by both Rubens and Van Dyck.

Van Dyck borrows Samson's pose from Rubens. Both depict Samson's bare back in order to draw attention to his musculature and strength, which disappears once his hair is cut.

Van Dyck sets his scene apart from Rubens by locating it outdoors. He also gives it an even greater sense of drama and theatricality, through his use of expressions and gestures.

Van Dyck gives greater agency to Delilah, so that she is the figure orchestrating the action. She raises her finger, ready to command the Philistine guards who lie in wait to capture Samson.

Van Dyck also gives greater attention to the background characters. The younger woman watches with an expression of shock, whilst the older woman looks on with curiosity.

The sheep-shears used to cut Samson's hair are much larger necessary, however, they add to the tension in the scene.

Van Dyck splays the woman's fingers to create a dramatic silhouette against the blue sky.

This watercolour shows how the painting was originally hung. It was given a prominent position, and hung below Titian's 'Venus and Adonis'; possibly to highlight the Italian master's influence on the young Van Dyck.

Van Dyck's portrait of Emmanuel Philibert of Savoy, Prince of Oneglia, perfectly demonstrates the artist's ability to replicate different materials and textures.

The armour is decorated with the arms of Savoy and Savoyard ducal coronets

This sketch is a preparatory study for the horse in Van Dyck’s posthumous portrait of Emperor Charles V (1500-1558), now in the Uffizi, Florence.

Painted on paper, the sketch was likely kept for use in Van Dyck’s studio and as a result deteriorated through frequent handling.

In the late 18th century the sketch was ‘restored’ by the Gallery’s founder Sir Francis Bourgeois, who pasted what remained onto panel and painted-in the missing sections.

Despite its poor condition, there is evidence of Van Dyck's characteristic confident and loose brushstrokes.There is also evidence of the fluid brown paint, typical of Van Dyck's sketches.