Perseus and Andromeda

Perseus and Andromeda is a 1622 oil on canvas painting by the Flemish artist Peter Paul Rubens and today it hangs in the Rubens Hall in Hermitage Museum.

This painting has several characters and it depicts the ancient Greek myth of Perseus and Andromeda, there is a reflection of Gorgon on Perseus's shield, the goddess of Tobiano Pegasus is also present and several putti. At the bottom of the painting, Cetus is partially showed and was earlier killed by Perseus.

There is also a winged horse held down by a putto and the scene of the painting is in a rocky cave. Perseus and Andromeda are among Rubens collections of other artworks based around the Greek mythologies and he produced this artwork while he was in Berlin. The theme of this painting is the power of love and liberation, this is evident in how Perseus touches Andromeda's hand and the way she looks at him is more than words can tell.

Andromeda is chained and three putti are lending a hand to liberate her while the goddess of glory is crowning Perseus for liberating the naked maiden. Peter Paul Rubens drew his influence from Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Caravaggio. During his career, Rubens produced numerous artworks such as Assumption of the Virgin Mary, The Raising of the Cross, Samson and Delilah and Three Graces.

Descent of the Cross is his most successful painting and today it hangs in the National Gallery in London. Rubens is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque style and he inspired other artists such as Eugene Delacroix, Paul Cezanne and Edouard Manet.

Rubens artworks ranged from biblical, mythological to landscapes and they are enhanced by museums, cathedrals and churches all over the world. The modern eye criticizes his paintings for depicting women as highly sexualized beings and soft-bodied creatures though to his Baroque tradition he emphasized the concepts of desire, virtue, physical beauty and temptation.

His male subjects are opposite to his female subjects and they are depicted as biblical men who are depicted as partially nude and he hides their nudity using armor and sashes. Rubens's paintings elevated his subjects both the males and females by giving them status and importance in society. From this painting, we learn political significance as a poem of oppression and liberation against enemy powers.