It seems anachronistic and a little too culturally remote to call Rudolf II (1552-1612) a culture otaku, but that's how the catalog for the "Treasures of the Habsburg Monarchy," now in its second staging at Kyoto National Museum until March 14, describes him. The reclusive Rudolf had diverse interests encompassing the occult, natural philosophy and astronomy. But it is in his role as patron of the arts that the present exhibition embraces him.
The Habsburg house was divided into two branches — the Austrian rulers from 1278 to the end of World War II and a Spanish dynasty that occupied the throne from 1516 to 1700. They wielded tremendous wealth and political privilege, and their artistic patronage largely inform us of the art history of the centuries in which they held power, even today with mostly minor amendments.
They called to court the services of such luminaries as Albrecht Durer, Titian, Diego Velazquez and Peter Paul Rubens, the birth countries of whom — Germany, Italy, Spain and Flanders/Holland — serve as the regional divisions into which the paintings in the exhibition are displayed. Focusing primarily on works from 1600-1800, Rudolf II's predilection for Mannerism and the erotic are well represented.
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