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    The Arnolfini Portrait

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    The Arnolfini Portrait by Jan Van Eyck from 1434 contains many symbolic details that provide meaning and context about the subjects beyond what initially meets the eye. Some symbols include oranges representing wealth, the man's bare feet indicating a holy place, a single lit candle representing the holy ghost, and Van Eyck's signature above the mirror. The painting also references marriage through the bride's green wedding gown, the couple's hand placement, and the figure of St. Margaret atop the bedpost signaling pregnancy. The key lesson is that critically examining subtle details in art provides deeper insights beyond surface level observations.

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    The Arnolfini Portrait

    Uploaded by

    api-454311317
    51 views1 page
    The Arnolfini Portrait by Jan Van Eyck from 1434 contains many symbolic details that provide meaning and context about the subjects beyond what initially meets the eye. Some symbols include oranges representing wealth, the man's bare feet indicating a holy place, a single lit candle representing the holy ghost, and Van Eyck's signature above the mirror. The painting also references marriage through the bride's green wedding gown, the couple's hand placement, and the figure of St. Margaret atop the bedpost signaling pregnancy. The key lesson is that critically examining subtle details in art provides deeper insights beyond surface level observations.

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    the arnolfini portrait

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    The Arnolfini Portrait by Jan Van Eyck from 1434 contains many symbolic details that provide meaning and context about the subjects beyond what initially meets the eye. Some symbols include oranges representing wealth, the man's bare feet indicating a holy place, a single lit candle representing the holy ghost, and Van Eyck's signature above the mirror. The painting also references marriage through the bride's green wedding gown, the couple's hand placement, and the figure of St. Margaret atop the bedpost signaling pregnancy. The key lesson is that critically examining subtle details in art provides deeper insights beyond surface level observations.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    51 views1 page

    The Arnolfini Portrait

    Uploaded by

    api-454311317
    The Arnolfini Portrait by Jan Van Eyck from 1434 contains many symbolic details that provide meaning and context about the subjects beyond what initially meets the eye. Some symbols include oranges representing wealth, the man's bare feet indicating a holy place, a single lit candle representing the holy ghost, and Van Eyck's signature above the mirror. The painting also references marriage through the bride's green wedding gown, the couple's hand placement, and the figure of St. Margaret atop the bedpost signaling pregnancy. The key lesson is that critically examining subtle details in art provides deeper insights beyond surface level observations.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    of 1

    Amani Shami

    9/10/2018

    Art Appreciation 111

    The Arnolfini Portrait

    The Arnolfini Portrait made by Jan Van Eyck in 1434 is a very meaningful piece of artwork. There is so

    much meaning behind every little detail in the painting then simply what the eye meets. There are many iconography

    symbols placed everywhere on this portrait. One is the oranges on the left side of the painting. Oranges represent

    wealth because at this time in History. You could only get oranges from overseas, and only the wealthy was able to

    afford them. The oranges have also been said to represent love. The man has his shoes off because you are to take

    your shoes off on holy ground. A big symbol in this painting is the one candle lit on the chandelier. The one candle

    lit is said to represent the presence of the holy ghost. Also, above the mirror, Jan Van Eyck has made his signature

    printing “Jan Van Eyck was here.” The dog is also known to represent wealth, because the type of dog that they

    have is a rare breed. Those are only some forms of iconography in this piece of work, but those are most known and

    basic ones. The area of the painting that first draws the eye is the woman’s green wedding gown. It draws your eye

    first because it stands out. The bright green is in contrast to the rest of the painting. At first, I did not notice the two

    other people in the painting; if you look close into the mirror, you can see them. One is dressed in red and the other

    is in a blue. There are a couple references of marriage, childbirth, and death. If you look atop of the bed post, there is

    a little St. Margaret which people believed signaled an indication of pregnancy. It is also debated whether the

    woman in the painting is pregnant or not. In that time it was the fashion to bustle up your dress in the front, but some

    also say she was pregnant and actually died in childbirth. The placing of the hands is a reference to marriage also.

    Not only does the wedding gown represent marriage, but also the hand placement of the two newly weds. The man

    is holding out his left hand and the woman’s right hand is placed on his hand and both have open fists, indicating

    that they both have agreed to the marriage. I believe the meaning of the research is to teach us that there is more than

    what meets the eye, and it is important to have critical thinking skills to be able to do complex things in life. People

    tend to only look on the surface of things sometimes, but it is important to dig deeper and be opened minded to what

    other possibilities there are other than what you simply think they are.

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