Renaissance

 

Portrait of Giovanni Arnolfini and his Wife (The Arnolfini Portrait), 1434

National Gallery in London

Jan van Eyck

When I first saw this oil painting, I immediately thought the woman was pregnant. Come to find out later that she was not. There are so many other things in this that I had missed at first glance. I did not notice their reflection in the mirror behind them. I also believed the man was a priest. It is not the brightest of paintings that caught my eye, but I feel the message perceived was catching. This in fact is a portrait of husband and wife. 

My impression of him is that he is in charge. His wife looks at him admirably and adoring. I think the holding of hands represents that they stand side by side one another. Her holding her stomach had me thinking she was with child; however, I discovered she is really holding up material and during the Renaissance era this gesture of her keeping her hand close to her in public was viewed as polite. This painting allowed me to feel its depth. It is considered one of the most original and complex paintings in Western art, because of its beauty, complex iconography, geometric orthogonal perspective.

Van Eyck used the technique of applying several layers of thin translucent glazes to create a painting with an intensity of both tone and color as well as an illusion. The glowing color's also helping to highlight the realism, and to show the material wealth and opulence of Arnolfini's world. This painting also does not lack symbols either.  For instance, the oranges on the windowsill and the statue of Saint Margret, one can assume conception is forth coming. So much detail went into this painting, reflects humanism through its detailed depiction of the couple's material wealth, symbolic items, and intimate connection. 

Bibliography:

Jan van Eyck | Portrait of giovanni(?) arnolfini and his wife (the arnolfini portrait) (1434) | artsy. Available at: https://www.artsy.net/artwork/jan-van-eyck-portrait-of-giovanni-arnolfini-and-his-wife-the-arnolfini-portrait-1 (Accessed: 11 February 2025).

Arnolfini Portrait (2024) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arnolfini_Portrait (Accessed: 11 February 2025).