JANKA VD MERWE

Although holding up a hand like the man is would be recognized as telling someone to halt or wait, but I think that given the context it would mean that he is greeting somebody.

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Emotional

I feel curious about the dog on the floor, as well as intrigued by the focus of the woman. I want to know why she is ‘celebrated’ in this painting, what made the artist choose to paint her so vibrantly, and what is the man symbolizing to or with the woman.

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2. Contextual Understanding

The Artist   
The artist’s name is Jan van Eyck (1380-1441). He was first employed at the Hague as a painter and a ‘Valet de Chambre’ to John III the ruler of Holland and Hainaut in the Hague. After John’s death, he was employed by Philip the Duke of Burgundy until in 1429 where he moved to Bruges to stay until his death. Philip regarded van Eyck very highly, by allowing him to go on many diplomatic visits abroad including one to Lisbon, Portugal to explore the possibility of a marriage between the Duke and Isabella of Portugal. The painting is said to be of the Italian merchant Giovanni di Nicolao Arnolfini and his wife.

Background
Personal Context
Although nobody really knows who exactly is depicted in the painting, but many now believe it is either Giovanni di Arrigo or his cousin, Giovanni di Nicolao Arnolfini after much debate about where it is Giovanni [di Arrigo] Arnolfini between historians. Though, the man depicted in the Arnolfini painting is seen again in a future painting, which give us the interpretation of the man being a friend of van Eycks.

 

Wider Context

How does the work link with the social, cultural or political history of the time? Do you think these circumstances have influenced how it was made? Does it reflect the ideas or values of the time? Are there ways of telling when it was made? Is the date significant? Eg a time of war or social/technological change?

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Associations & Influences

This painting is the only recorded painting of the time to depict people in a room, which some people have theorized could be the first genre painting. Genre paintings (otherwise known as genre scene or petite genre) are paintings that depict everyday life of ordinary people doing ordinary everyday things. Normally, the people in these paintings would be unidentifiable people, creating a purpose that doesn't necessarily involve knowing the subjects. It makes sense why people would think that his painting fits that genre/movement in art history, because nobody knows who these two seemingly ordinary peoples names are, and what they are doing but it seems ordinary and normal.

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Ideas & Intentions

From the context that I have been given from my research, I believe that Jan van Eyck went against the style of the time and made a painting of daily natural life through the use of symbolism. During the time that this painting was made, the style was Gothic, Celtic, and renaissance paintings. This painting is definitely not anything like Gothic and Celtic styles, it is more relatable to the 1500's style, which was Classical Culture like Donatello, Botticelli and Michelangelo. Van Eyck had started an art movement.

In this painting, by using symbolism Van Eyck was trying to show the world the natural lives of people in a higher class of society.

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3. Formal Elements

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Written Analysis

Subject Matter

The focal point of this painting would definitely be the woman from the couple. This is because her dress is such a bright green, and is so contrasting to her pale white skin. She is also contrasting with the dullness of the room and of her partners outfit. Her white headscarf also makes her standout to the rest of the colorful painting.

Jan Van Eyck creatively uses symbols to create his meaning. Everything to the placement of the couple was thought about in perspective to the meaning. The bed is placed behind the woman and the window is placed behind the man because it shows how when the men leave the home for work the women attend to the domestic work in the house. This reinforces the idea of the natural life of high class society that I think Van Eyck was trying to depict.

The heavy cloth and fur on the couples outfits already reinforces the idea of upper class because the more cloth there was in your clothing, the more money it would cost. Fur was also a sign of high class because it was established by the law that only the upper class society could wear it. Upon some research, I also came to find that green, red and blue dyes were also expensive during the time so the color of the cloth is yet again another sign of high class.

 

Composition

The main objects in the painting is the couple, the window, the bed and the dog. As previously stated, the woman is stood in front of the bed and the man is stood in front of the window to symbolize how while the men are out at work all day the women attend to domestic work in the house.

At their feet is a dog who at first sight could be seen just as a sign of wealth. However if you think about it more, a dog could mean that they spend a lot of time at the home (at least the woman) and she doesn't have a baby so the dog accompanies her when shes feeling lonely.

 

Materials/Techniques/ Processes

One of the most impressive things in this painting is that Eyck used thin translucent glazes to create the deep colors. This takes more time than ever due to the fact that oil paint in general takes a long time to dry anyways. However he used this to his advantage and painted wet-on-wet to blend colors together to create subtle changes in light and shade which heightened the illusion of a three dimensional painting.

His intense colors also help to 'highlight the realism, and to show the material wealth and opulence of Arnolfini's world.' (Wikipedia, 2016).

 

Colour

Van Eyck uses complementary and contrasting colors to create a sense of wealth in this painting. The more brighter and richer colors are put on the side of the woman, which could mean that the artist is also trying to celebrate her, or to show that he works so that she could live like that.

One thing that van Eyck is also praised about in this painting is his excellent use of color placement to create the illusion of three dimensions. He definitely has a good sense of light. Which could support mean that he was using a projector to create this painting with such great detail and understanding of light. The fact that this painting i much smaller than expected is also a sign that he used a projector for the painting.

 

Mood/Atmosphere/ Environment

Opulence, beauty, wealth, class, and bold are 5 words I would use to describe the mood.

I think that Van Eyck want's his audience to be jealous and amazed at his classy and rich life. This painting is a statement of wealth, and I imagine if I were to be in the painting the couple would have grace in all their actions. I'm sure I would be able to smell perfumes or frankincense because that is what I imagine rich people had.

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Concluding Response

Value

Looking at this particular artwork is important to me because I will be using symbolism to create my metaphor and meaning, just like he has. I want to get an idea of how artists in the past have used simple details to influence the viewer and what they would think about the artwork. The most important thing I can take from studying this artwork is that even the simplest of things can have such a great effect. Placement was one of the things that I didn't expect the most, I never knew that placement could be used like Eyck did to create gender roles.

I really like looking at this piece because I am so attracted by the colors. I love the complementary green and red and the deepness of the colors as well. I think that pure skill is why this artwork has value to me. The intense colors created by many translucent layers of glaze, the beautiful and detailed dress and bed curtains, they all make harmony together in my eyes.

Upon first sight, I didn't think much about the symbolism and thought that it was just a couple in a room. I wasn't quite sure why it was so famous, but I feel that I have been enlightened after studying the symbolism in the artwork. I don't think that I would ever judge a painting without looking at it for more than a few hours because you truly cannot see the full meaning just with one glance.

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Applying Knowledge and Understanding

In my future artworks I am going to have a better understanding of the importance and relevance of placement in the artwork and will try to incorporate that. Also being mindful about small details and symbols that could be used in my work will be a new thing for me.

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