How are you?
On every Thursday, I am introducing
the stories about various artists and their paintings with the title
“Interesting Art Stories”.
The 11th story for this week is "The Arnolfini Portrait" by a Dutch painter Jan van Eyck.
Jan van Eyck
The Arnolfini Portrait, also known as the "The Arnolfini Wedding” or "The Portrait of Giovanni Arnolfini and his Wife", is an oil painting by the Dutch painter Jan van Eyck in 1434. It is a full-length double portrait, depicting the Italian merchant Giovanni di Nicolao Arnolfini and his wife, and the place of the painting is presumed to be their residence at the Flemish city of Bruges.
Portrait of Giovanni di Nicolao Arnolfini, Jan van Eyck
The placement of the husband and wife in the painting shows the traditional notions of the 15th century about marriage and gender roles. In other words, the woman stands near the bed as a symbol of her role of taking care of the family, while Arnolfini stands near the open window to symbolize his role of working outside for his family. Arnolfini looks at the viewers who see the painting, but his wife obediently gazes at her husband. His hand vertically raised represents his authority, while his wife's hand is in a lower, horizontal and more submissive pose. However, her gaze at her husband indicates that she is equal to her husband, as she does not look down on the floor like a lower class woman.
It is also a controversial painting among experts with some believing the painting depicts a marriage scene and others saying it is a commemoration of a couple’s marriage painted in memory of the deceased wife. This painting shows that the woman is shown with a visible bulge, but the consensus is that the woman in the painting is not pregnant but the meaning of suggesting fertility.
The mirror at the back of the room reflects two figures who seem to be standing in the position of the viewer, one of whom is said to be van Eyck himself. Also, the small medallions in the frame of the mirror show the scenes from the Passion of Christ and may represent an expression of God's promise of salvation for those reflected on the mirror. Also, the mirror itself may represent the eye of God watching the vows of the wedding, and the spotless mirror is a symbol of the purity of the Virgin Mary.
Mirror
The little dog in the painting can be seen as a symbol of fidelity and loyalty, or as a symbol of a couple's desire to have a child.
The woman's green dress symbolizes her desire to become a mother, or at the time since dyeing fabrics in green was difficult and thus expensive, it might be another symbol of wealth.
The single candle in the left-front holder of an ornate chandelier is the candle used in traditional Flemish weddings and the candle may allude to the presence of the Holy Ghost or the ever-present eye of God.
The cherries on the tree outside the window may symbolize love, and the oranges on the window sill and chest symbolize the purity and innocence when in the Garden of Eden before the Fall of Man. At the time, since oranges were very expensive imports, they also could be another symbol of wealth.
Van Eyck wrote "Jan van Eyck was here 1434" in Latin on the wall in the painting to indicate that he painted it.
Jan van Eyck, who drew this painting, is considered to be the inventor of oil painting, and it is one of the first oil paintings. While regarded as one of the most important paintings in history, it is also a subject of many controversies. It is also considered one of the most original and complex paintings in Western art due to its beauty, complex iconography, geometric orthogonal perspective, and expansion of the picture space with the use of a mirror.
The National Gallery in London currently possesses this painting since 1842, when they purchased it.
The National Gallery
Thank you.
No comments:
Post a Comment