I came across Quentin Matsys (or Massys) because of his painting A Grotesque Old Woman (also known as The Ugly Duchess).Born in 1466, there are a number of interesting details about Matsys. With an interest in 16th-century artists from Flanders, I have been researching the Guild of Saint Luke and the Antwerp School of Artists. Matsys was a founding member of the Antwerp School.
But his background is equally as intriguing - Legend has it that Massys gave up a career as a blacksmith to woo his wife. Apparently, she found painting to be a more romantic profession. Alas, another source says that the real reason was due to sickness and he was simply too weak to work at the smithy. I'm going to stick to the original story as I think he looks like a romantic soul. Whatever the reason, he was a very successful painter during his lifetime.
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| The Ugly Duchess (c. 1513) National Gallery, London |
As for the grotesque old woman:
There are a number of symbols indicating a desire to return to her younger days. She wears the aristocratic horned headdress of her youth, but out of fashion at the time of the painting. In her right hand she holds a red flower - a symbol of engagement so perhaps she is trying to attract a suitor. Sadly for the woman, it has been described as a bud that will 'likely never blossom'.
There is a possible literary influence of Erasmus's essay In Praise of Folly (1511). This satirizes women who 'still play the coquette', 'cannot tear themselves away from their mirrors' and 'do not hesitate to exhibit their repulsive withered breasts'.
Oh dear, Erasmus - such an unkind remark does not bode well, especially as it was International Women's Day yesterday.
