In Antwerp, the Rubens House , the house built by Flemish baroque painter Sir Peter Paul Rubens, is marking the start of the tulip season with a tulip festival. 1,000 tulips have been planted in the baroque garden, but only a small proportion of them are already in bloom. The tulip bulbs have been carefully selected. ‘We have 22 varieties that resemble 17th-century tulips,’ says garden curator Klara Alen.
Antwerp’s Rubens House highlights 17th-century tulips in authentic baroque garden
Colin Clapson
Published:
At first glance, there is no abundance of tulips in the sun-drenched garden of the Rubens House. But according to director Watteeuw, we should visit the garden with the right expectations.
No Dutch field of tulips
"I think people are too affected by the image of Dutch tulips, where the brightly coloured tulips bloom in all the fields. That is not the style we are aiming for. We are really trying to recreate a 17th-century baroque garden here. The first tulips have now bloomed, but many will grow in coming weeks."
Based on the tulip trade of 1730
From red over purple to purple-white-flamed tulips: these are just some of the 22 tulip varieties selected for the baroque garden.
Garden curator Klara Alen was in charge of that careful process. "In the archives, I came across a volume by a notary from 1637, which reveals the tulip trade of that day. It’s on this basis, the varieties were selected."
Enthusiastic visitors
The fact that the tulip festival does not resemble postcards from the Netherlands is not spoiling the party. "Not all the tulips are open yet, but that is quite normal because tulips have different flowering seasons. It may not be a bad thing either, because this way it does not look too bombastic" says one visitor.
‘I think it's a beautiful garden,’ responds another. "I've seen it develop and it's really worth coming to see. It's perhaps the 15th time I've come to see it, and it's really worth seeing every time, in every season."
You have been able to revisit Rubens' garden since the end of August. It has been redesigned based on old documents and still lifes from the 17th century, as Rubens' original design has not been preserved. The renovation of the artist's residence itself has not yet been completed; it will only reopen in 2030.