In 1597, Rubens was an unheard-of apprentice painter in Antwerp. By 1614 he had transformed himself from an awkward (but promising) student to a virtuoso artist with an international reputation.

As soon as he could, he went travelling through France to Italy and Spain.

Rubens copied a huge number of works by other artists.From sculptures of Greek and Roman antiquity, to the works of the great Renaissance artists such as Leonardo, to the stars of the 16th century such as Titian and Veronese up to the greatest of his contemporary artists such as Caravaggio, He made copies of their works and experimented with their styles and techniques.

The early painting on this page (from about 1598-9) shows Rubens copying the composition of an Italian artist. His understanding of anatomy (particularly female anatomy) is still rather limited.

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