Background
Hélène Fourment was the daughter of Daniël Fourment, an Antwerp silk merchant, and Clara Stappaerts.
Hélène Fourment was the daughter of Daniël Fourment, an Antwerp silk merchant, and Clara Stappaerts.
She was the subject of a few portraits by Rubens, and also modeled for other religious and mythological paintings. Hélène was the youngest of the 11 Fourment children. Hélène Fourment married Rubens on 6 December 1630, when she was 16 years old and he was aged 53.
Hélène"s brother Daniël Fourment the younger was married to Clara Brant, the sister of Isabella.
Daniël Fourment the elder was an art lover and possessed works by Rubens and Jacob Jordaens, and works by Italian masters. He also commissioned from Rubens a series of tapestries depicting the life of Achilles.
Rubens and Hélène Fourment had five children: Isabella-Helena, baptized 3 May 1635 Peter Paul, baptized 1 March, became a priest Constantia-Albertina, baptized 3 February 1641. Became a nun After the death of Rubens, Helena started a relationship with January-Baptist van Brouchoven, assessor and alderman of Antwerp, who later became Count of Bergeyk.
They had five further children together.
= Portraits in wedding dress, Munich, Alte Pinakothek, 1630-1631. A studio copy of this work is in the collection of the Rijksmuseum Pörtrait of with a glove", Munich, Alte Pinakothek (same as above?) Rubens and walking in their garden, Munich and Frans Rubens, Louvre Portrait of (?) Portrait of (?) = Model.
