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The Arnolfini Portrait

The Arnolfini Portrait. By Jan van Eyck. Who is Jan van Eyck?. Here’s a few facts:. 1390 – 1441 He was Flemish and lived in Bruges in Europe. Only about 23 of his paintings survived of which only ten are signed and dated. No one knows exactly when or where he was born.

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The Arnolfini Portrait

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  1. The Arnolfini Portrait By Jan van Eyck

  2. Who is Jan van Eyck?

  3. Here’s a few facts: • 1390 – 1441 • He was Flemish and lived in Bruges in Europe. • Only about 23 of his paintings survived of which only ten are signed and dated. • No one knows exactly when or where he was born. • He used to be a court painter. That’s the first records we have of him. • That fact that were some Hebrew and Greek in his paintings, proofed that he was probably schooled in the classics. • We think he had two brothers. They were also painters. • He often collaborated with other painters. • There was a myth that said he invented oil painting because of the way he was able to handle and manipulate the paint. • He was well-known in his lifetime across Northern Europe. • He’s motto was: “Alsikkan” (As I can) • It shows his developing self-confidence. • He married a much younger than him Margaret. • He was held with high regards by the upper ranks. He also accepted foreign commissions. • In 1425 he worked for the powerful and influential Valois prince, Duke Philip the Good of Burundy. • His salary was high and he got special bonuses. • The Duke was godfather to one of his children and supported his wife after his death. • He died young. (Why?) • Left behind many unfinished works that were completed by others. • He was probably the best artist of the early 15th century!

  4. The Arnolfini Portrait Oil painting on oak panel 1434 82cm X 62cm Much of what we know is speculation and very much debated! Giovanni di NicolaoArnolfini (an Italian merchant) and his wife (JeaneCenami) in there home, probably in Bruges. Some say the painting was a gift from Jan van Eyck to the couple. The Mirror reflect space. This work was revolutionary in the art world at the time. It was as if the artist became the perfect eye-witness. It was signed and dated. It now hangs in the National Gallery of Art in London.

  5. Painted layer after layer, this creates intensity in tone and colour. Very traditional method. • Material wealth is clear. Glowing colours highlight realism. • People are always amazed at the use of light to create the debth in the room. • It’s probably early summer – the fruit and cherry tree outside the window. • They’re both richly dressed. (warm?) • His tabard was probably more purple, but the pigments in the paint has faded over time. • There might be some restraint in their clothes. A person with such a status as himself, would for a portrait pose with heavy gold chains around him. • The big chandlier shows wealth. Also, the oranges – they didn’t have sweets! • A non-married woman would have her hair down, so we speculate they just got married. • Does where they stand matter/mean something?

  6. Giovanni looks directly at us and the wife gazes obediently at her husband. • Her gaze shows her equality to her husband because she’s not looking down at the floor as lower class women did.

  7. His hand is vertically raised. This represents a commanding position. (Authority) • Her hand is lower, more horizontal, more submissive. • Why is only one of the six candles burning? • Why would it be burning if it is daylight?

  8. Some assume the wife is pregnant. But they might be wrong. • A lot of virgin saints were dressed similarly in paintings. It might just have been the fashion at that time. • We know that fashion would have been important to them as Arnolfini was a cloth merchant. • The more cloth one wore, the more wealth people assumed you had. • We also know that she isn’t pregnant in the picture, because they died without any children. • Some say she is gesturing pregnancy, showing an extreme desire to have children.

  9. Carved figure on the bedpost. • Probably Saint Margaret – saint of pregnancy and childbirth. • From the bedpost hangs a brush. This might symbolize domestic duties.

  10. The mirror has small medallions as a frame. • Each one shows a scene from the Passion of Christ. • Some say the mirror represents the eye of God observing the vows of the wedding.

  11. View in mirror shows the couple and a second figure wearing red. This we think is Jan van Eyck. This makes the painting a double portrait! • Some say the two figures are the witnesses to the marriage.

  12. The oranges may symbolize purity and innocence. (think of the Garden of Eden.) • They were also an uncommon fruit in the Netherlands, so it shows a sign of wealth.

  13. The dog is an early form of the breed now know as the Brussels griffon. • The dog could symbolize loyalty or the couple’s desire to have children.

  14. He signed the painting on the wall above the mirror. • It says: “Johannes de Eyck fuit hic 1434” (Jan van Eyck was here 1434) • Some say this signature proves that the painting itself served as a legal record of the marriage of this couple. The two in the mirror served as witnesses. (Much like a certificate of marriage

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