As you watch the short seven minute video, explain why a painting this early in the 15th C. would NOT have as its focus a Church or religious theme? There are elements of religion and the Church in the painting but it is far from the focal point. Explain why this would be the case. What are the focal point of the painting? What can you conclude about Arnolfini and his wife from the painting? Consider where Van Eyck came from and why the religious theme would be a secondary theme.
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Art in the North
The Arnolfini Portriat by Jan van Eyck is one of the most valuable and important paintings in the world. It was painted in 1436 by Van Eyck using oil on wood. What makes it so unique are the many symbols associated with the painting---the dog, fruit, clothing, and the sandals. Van Eyck was most likely born in 1395 near Maastricht, Netherlands. He was from the gentry class and what is most important about Van Eyck's painting is the subject, Giovanni Arnolfini and his wife.
As you watch the short seven minute video, explain why a painting this early in the 15th C. would NOT have as its focus a Church or religious theme? There are elements of religion and the Church in the painting but it is far from the focal point. Explain why this would be the case. What are the focal point of the painting? What can you conclude about Arnolfini and his wife from the painting? Consider where Van Eyck came from and why the religious theme would be a secondary theme.
As you watch the short seven minute video, explain why a painting this early in the 15th C. would NOT have as its focus a Church or religious theme? There are elements of religion and the Church in the painting but it is far from the focal point. Explain why this would be the case. What are the focal point of the painting? What can you conclude about Arnolfini and his wife from the painting? Consider where Van Eyck came from and why the religious theme would be a secondary theme.
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Artist Jan Van Eyck came from the gentry, the middle class that was rising so rapidly at the time of the early 15th C., also known as the Late Middle Ages. By that time, both the bubonic plague and substantial criticism of the Church's practices (by dissidents such as John Wycliffe) had swept through Europe, causing many to question both the power of God vested in the Church and the Church's credibility. As secular leaders began to successfully challenge the papacy, the power of the Church was in decline.
ReplyDeleteAs a result, the primary focus of peoples' lives underwent a dramatic shift from religion and faith to the concept of "money" and socioeconomic status. In other words, money and wealth came first, then the Bible.
It is clear that Arnolfini and his wife (as the focal points of the painting) are depicted as being wealthy people, yet they do not seem to possess the royal presence that would represent nobility; this signifies that they are in the top echelon of the gentry. Wealth is suggested from the intricate chandelier, presence of oranges [an extremely expensive luxury], and details such as the rich red color of the bed and elaborate fringe on the wife's dress.
It is important to note that the Church is not forgotten in the painting, twelve scenes of Christ are intricately painted into thumbnail circular portraits on the back mirror, hinting that while religion is still a part of everyday life, it has conceded to wealth and personal status as life's primary focus.
Religion having been pushed into a more secondary role; this paved the way for the concept of capitalism to gradually manifest itself as a significant principle within European society over the extent of the next few hundred years.
Although there are small hints of Christianity in Jan Van Eyck's painting such as the small medallions around the mirror in the back of the bedroom, the focus of the painting is the man and woman, especially their illuminated and expressive faces. Christianity declining during the Late Middle Ages and especially into when this work was created during the Renaissance in the early 15th century was caused by a few main factors. First of all, the bubonic plague during the Late Middle Ages caused people to no longer trust the Church and the supposed invincibility of the clergy. On top of that, many reformists who were part of the Protestant Reformation and other writers greatly criticized the Church. For example, John Wycliffe questioned members of the clergy's power to perform miracles and criticized the pope, calling him "Antichrist." With the decline of Christianity into the period of the Renaissance, people focused on the material world and used their own talents to gain wealth. Thus, there was a rise of capitalism into the Renaissance, a period in which people became fascinated in the material world and not just the after life. The "rebirth" during this period is therefore the return of humanist culture which was such a large part of ancient Rome and ancient Greece.
ReplyDeleteJan Van Eyck captured this idea of a shift from focusing primarily on Heaven to focusing primarily on this world in his painting, demonstrated by the focal points being Arnolfini and his wife and not a symbol of Christ. The topic of the material world in his painting would make sense considering that Eyck was a member of the gentry class, a high social class. Wealth is seen in many different parts of the painting; the expensive oranges, the wife's elegant dress, the velvet used in this bedroom, and the chandelier all serve to show the wealth of Arnolfini and his wife.
Eyck using the wealth and people as the focus point of his painting shows that the material world is now more important to him and many other people of the Renaissance than religion is.
-SJE
As analyzed by the 'Art Historians', the focal point of the painting is the man and wife as opposed to anything religious. My opinion as to why Jan Van Eyck does this is that he is trying to show a changing of times express the change going on in the 15th century.
ReplyDeleteAs expressed throughout the picture, the man and woman are rich. Examples of this such as the dog and clothes are situated in the front of painting to show their prominence. On the other hand, religious symbols which used to be prominent are now only found all the way in the back on the room on the mirror. Van Eyck does to to represent the rise of the common man at the cost of the christianity.
Furthermore, the flame is a representation of Christ in many churches. Van Eyck creates this painting with only one candle as opposed to four to symbolize the fading away of Christianity in society. Likewise, characteristics such as greed have triumphed other characteristics as depicted by the expensive fruit (which is not necessary) and the clothes.
Overall, Jan Van Eyck paints this work with symbols to express the fall of Christianity and rise of the commonality.
Through the transition from the Late Middle Ages into the Renaissance, there is both a decline in Christianity and an evolution into capitalism. Van Eyck displays these facets of change in the European world clearly in this portrait.
ReplyDeleteMultiple pieces of the painting emphasize the decline of the Church's power. The main reference to Christianity is the inclusion of minuscule stories of Christ drawn with a single hair brush towards the back of the painting. One would not notice them with just one glance at a museum. The other reference is the existence of a single candle instead of a full chandelier. This is, once again, a very tiny, unimportant detail that is hard to spot.
The rise of capitalism is displayed everywhere in the painting. The video mentioned multiple ways in which this was shown, from the clothes Arnolfini and his wife wear to their furnishings to the foods they eat. Each of these details is rather obvious, shown clearly with stark colors or size.
Van Eyck, being from the middle/merchant class, put such a great emphasis on the material possessions of Arnolfini to display his approval of the move into capitalism. If Arnolfini was born 200 years before, he would have been a peasant. However, because of a society based on commodities and currency, he now has the chance to have a real life.
NOTE : This is a bit to the side, but I wanted to include it anyway. If Van Eyck had been born in the High Middle Ages, his painting skills would be lost to the world. Perhaps the rise of the middle class is directly related to the advancement in painting through the renaissance.
Even though there are symbols of religion and christianity in the portrait (the one lit candle and the story of the passion of the christ on the mirror) the main focus of the painting is on the man and the room. Jan van Eyck does this to symbolize the changing of the middle age world into the early renaissance.
ReplyDeleteVan Eyck was presenting the fall of the christian way of life and the rise of the middle class and putting the focus on the people instead of religion. Van Eyck does not make the Christian symbols more important than the man and the woman and almost allows the common people to overtake religion and be the main focus. People were beginning to realize that the church should not be their main focus and that the should focus on their wealth and place of being.
Van Eyck came from a 'high-bred' class know as the gentry class. He would have also, like Arnolfini, have contained a large amount of wealth and social status. The symbols he used expressed his own lifestyle in the portrait. The clothes that they wear and the fresh fruit presented show how important class was becoming in the early renaissance.
Arnolfini and his wife both are from a rich class and they represent what Van Eyck thought that the Church was on the decline and that social status was becoming more important
At the dawn of the 15th Century, the Middle Ages were at an end, and the Renaissance in its birth. The general level of life was rising, as the Black Death was clearing its way North, having been in Southern Europe for a time. As the Plague lifted, people started to rebound, and the middle class started to rise, with the influx of artisans and craftsman.
ReplyDeleteThis portrait of Arnolfini and his Wife is a clear depiction of this time of transition. Arnolfini is clearly rich in a ways, as the furnishings in his house are tasteful and fashionable. His wife and he both are wearing clothes that were of the higher class, but not of royalty. He and his wife are the focus of the painting, showing how at the end of the Middle Ages, that your position and level in society was one of the more important things. People are working to gain money and prestige, while religion has declined in prominence.
The decline of the power of the Church can be seen in this portrait by Van Eyck. the lack of a general theme of religion as was common in the Middle Ages shows not only a change in time, but also a change in thoughts. People no longer are bound and trapped to religion, but follow it freely, and after their main life. But the fact that religion is still there, around the mirror depicting the scenes from the Passion of Christ, shows that religion was not just out of the door, but that it was still apart of everyone's life, just not as much as the Middle Ages.
-Jonathan Yue
As the Middle Ages transitioned to the Renaissance, the focus on faith and religion transitioned to the focus on humanity and the material world. In the Late Middle Ages, the Bubonic plague affected millions of people in Europe and killed 1/3 of the population.
ReplyDeleteWhile people continued to pray, they were still suffering from epidemic and that caused the people to question faith and stray away from it being the focus of their lives and made them realize that there are other things in the human world which they should rely on and focus on. That is shown in the painting in the way that while there is still places where there is religion like around the mirror and the one candle, the focus of the painting is no longer religion like it was in the middle ages but the two humans in it, Giovanni Arnolfini and his wife.
From the painting, beholders can see that Giovanni and his wife, just like Jan van Eyck from his high class background, are attracted to material items because of their rich items such as their clothing and their carpet. Their love of material items further shows that the people of the Renaissance shifted their main priorities from their faith to what they have.
Religion would not be the focus of the time during the Renaissance era because of what had happened during the Late Middle Ages. During the Late Middle Ages the church became corrupt. It gave up faith for worldly power. The Black Plague hit and it killed 1/3rd of the european civilization. Wen the clergy member began to die, people started to question religion because why would god kill his people. When the Renaissance era came about faith was given up for logic and reason. With reason the main goal of the people now becoming rich and powerful was everyone's goal. With 1/3rd of the population killed, becoming rich and power full was easier because a lot of cheap stuff was up for grabs. With religion no longer the main focus of the people it became a secondary focus.
ReplyDeleteThe focal points of the painting have nothing to do with religion. They are the people, the clothing, the dog, and the faith circle thing in the back.
Arnolfini and his wife are rich people. Their clothing shows that they are not poor. The fines of the clothing and the tequnie used shows that it was not cheep. it is heave clothing but it is warm outside. this might show that they are a big influens on others. They do not change with others but go their own path. the are not the common folk. The dog can also show that they are not the common folk, they rule over others. They are not the lower class but the alpha dog. The shoes being off shows that they are comfortable with themselves. they are not strangers but already married and have a flowing relationship.Also the faith circle thing in the back shows that they have not fully given up religion. They are stil religious but they do not show it that must.
The man and woman take are the main focus in this painting because that is what van Eyck was paid to paint. At this time the middle class was becoming more prominent. It was this rise of the middle class that allowed for painters like van Eyck to make money. Painters were no longer employed exclusively by the church, but now by individuals as well. This would have caused them to show people as the main focus because that is who they were getting paid by,
ReplyDeleteHowever, Jan van Eyck still uses a large amount of symbolism to show that the church was still an important part of the daily like during this time period. For example, he shows only one candle on the chandelier. This is supposed to represent the presence of God. This shows that people still worshipped and acted religious even if the Church was losing power. Van Eyck also shows stories of Christ in the paintings on the mirror. This shows that the people who had the mirror in their house were religious, but it also shows their wealth. Somebody without money would not have been able to afford a mirror like that one. This again shows the rise of middle class, but it also demonstrates that religion is still important.
This painting shows that even though the social classes and the focuses of the time were changing religion remained important. Van Eyck shows this through symbolism and detail. The main work of the painting is the people, but the details represent the religious aspect of their lives.
~David Blomquist
In the early 15th century, the focus of the painting would not be on religion; rather, the painting would take a more humanist approach. This is mainly due to the black death. The Black Death killed many Europeans including priests, bishops, cardinals, and popes. These religious figures offered safety to the people from disease if they worshiped God and praised the Church, and when they could not protect themselves from the plague the people saw that the Church was not all that it said it was, and thus lost some of its power. Also, the Black Death brought with it the rise of the middle class. This rise in capitalism brought in a new humanistic approach to life which ushered in the Renaissance.
ReplyDeleteThe painting by Van Eyck was of a man, who was likely a wealthy merchant, and his wife. This painting shows how humanism was now a more dominant factor than the Church in the Middle Ages, however, Van Eyck does use two symbols that refer to the Church which shows that it was still very relevant. The first symbol was the chandelier. The chandelier had only one candle which represented the presence of God. Also, the mirror has illustrations of Jesus which show the Church's presence.
Although, there are some symbols of the Church in this painting, the number of items that represent humanism far outweigh those that represent the Church. The extremely lavish carpet and clothes represent how this merchant had money, and the oranges represent how this man was probably a merchant because oranges are not native to Europe.
Van Eyke, like Giovanni Arnolfini and his wife, was part of the upper middle class. Many of the items shown in this picture he would have had in his own home. This was also the life of many men during the Renaissance. Therefore this painting is a representation of Giovanni Arnolfini and his wife's lives, his life, and most importantly the lives of the people in the Renaissance period.
Alex Mardiney
To understand why religion is not the main focus of this portrait, one has to think about the time at which this portrait was created. The Arnolfini Portriat by Jan van Eyck was painted in 1436. The year 1436 was apart of the developing stages of the Renaissance period. The people of the Renaissance period placed religion "on the back burner" and revived the culture of individualism and humanism, ideologies that both the Greeks and Romans thought highly of. The people of the Renaissance period transitioned from religion to reason because of the effects of the Black Death. The Black Death killed thousands of people, including members of the clergy. Once the commoners began to witness members of the clergy becoming immune to the Black Death, they started to question why God would kill his own people.
ReplyDeleteAccording to art historians, the items in the portrait that symbolize the Church and religion are the chandelier with one lone lit candle and the dispersal of shoes. The chandelier with the one lone lit candle represented the presence of God while the shoes represented that there may have been sacred event taking place. Although these items are present, they are not the focal point of the portrait. The religious items complement the overwhelming wealth that is being displayed in the portrait. The development of capitalism and social status in the Renaissance period is what is being brought out in this portrait. The merchants clothing and home furnishings reveal his wealth and social status.
Van Eyck was apart of the successful middle class in the Renaissance period. His painting abilities allowed him to make a good deal of money. His wealthy background explains why he religion is secondary to social status and consumption of money.
Jason King
A painting released this early in the 15th century would not focus primarily on religion and the Church but more on wealth and social status as was the defining factor of a man at this point in time called the Renaissance. At this time the emergence of capitalism was occuring meaning people no longer looked to God primarily for luck and guidance but learned they could make a living for oneself by becoming an accomplished merchant or artisan to earn money to support his own family.
ReplyDeleteThere is symbolism within the painting that has religious significance along with actual depictions of Christ but they are far from the main focal point of the artwork. What Van Eyck is trying to portray is the wealthiness and happiness of this family through the detail and symbolism he uses to place these two figures in this nice home. As you can see Arnolfini and his wife as depicted in the painting are the two wealthy people who wear fine textured clothing with nice furniture around the house along with fruit and animals lying around almost to say that not only is this merchant able to support his family but also thriving in this society.
Van Eyck would have religion as a secondary theme because for hundreds of years before him Christianity was the main focus of all art in the Middle Ages and so as times moved forward into the Renaissance, the remnants of religion would never altogether be forgotten. Instead they would be inserted but in less significant circumstances.
Jan van Eyck’s painting, The Arnolfini Potrait, depicts a middle-class merchant (Giovanni Arnolfini) and his wife holding hands. The painting is very interesting and can be understood in many ways. Unlike other painting before this one, Eyck’s painting does not focus on religion. He most likely did this to demonstrate the change from the Late Middle Ages into the Renaissance. There are several reasons why religion was fading out in the 15th century, including writers like Wycliffe who argued against the church and plagues that swept through most of Europe.
ReplyDeleteHowever, Eyck did not completely leave religion out of the painting, the one candle in the chandelier symbolizes god and scenes from the passion of Christ painted onto the mirror. Instead of the focal point being religious, Eyck instead focused on the wealth of the couple. The couple is shown to be wealthy through symbols like the pet dog, having oranges, wearing elegant fur coats, and the sandals on the floor – all of these things meant that you were wealthy.
Looking at all the evidence in the painting, the viewer can conclude that Giovanni Arnolfini and his wife were both wealthy and did not care about religious as much as they did about material wealth and appearance.
A painting from the 15th century would not have religion as the main focus, but instead would be focused on wealth. The growth of capitalism caused the economic and political power of the church to wane. With the economic and the political power of the church waning, the influence of the church on the people was weakened.
ReplyDeleteThe religious symbols in Jan van Eyck's painting are not the main focus because he is trying to represent the wealth of Arnolfini. Jan van Eyck was payed by Arnolfini to represent to represent his wealth, not the power of the church. Arnolfini and his wife are wearing their finest clothing which represents their wealth as well as the carpet and the oranges. The carpet represents Arnolfini's taste as well as his wealth. The oranges represent Arnolfini's wealth because oranges were expensive at the time. Through Jan van Eyck's use of many symbols of wealth, we can conclude that Arnolfini and his wife are very wealthy.
Jan van Eyck was from the gentry class, a wealthy high social class. Being from the gentry class, Jan van Eyck was more concerned with money than with religion. jan van Eyck was more concerned with money because he needed money to maintain his wealthy status as well as to pay for goods. Religion was a secondary theme to Jan van Eyck because he grew up with the rebirth of people becoming more interested in themselves than in the church.
-Ryan Cervino
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteBy the early 15th century, the focus of life had moved away from the Church, and people started to explore the more luxurious, enjoyable facets of humanism, such as art and literature. For this reason, artists had a major influence on the beliefs of the people, so painters like Jan van Eyck carefully chose their message to the viewers and created their masterpieces accordingly. In the Arnolfini Portrait, religion is the secondary theme. This summarizes the general zeitgeist of the time period: religion had become a less important aspect of human life, and emotions such as love had taken priority in most people’s lives. By placing religion under love and art, Jan van Eyck continued to promote the existing mindset of the “Renaissance man.”
ReplyDeleteVan Eyck depicts the Arnolfini couple relishing their various luxuries, such as the Giovanni’s fur coat and his wife’s elaborate dress. His point is simply that humans can enjoy life while maintaining religion (portrayed in the detailed mirror in the backdrop) as a secondary concern. In the Middle Ages, however, man believed that in order to live a fruitful life, he had to constantly acknowledge religion as his highest priority. Jan van Eyck uses Arnolfini and his wife to make a positive statement about the current time period. As an artist, it is clear that he appreciated the “change of heart” among the Italians after the Black Death swept through Europe.
Of course, Europe’s new outlook on life reverted back to the Greco-Roman influence that reigned supreme two thousand years prior. After much experimentation and thought, the Greeks concluded that man could fulfill his natural desires for culture, luxury, and comfort while also practicing and devoting himself to his religion. This attitude was reborn in the Renaissance (hence, the time period’s name), and the people of Europe once again discovered the pleasures of art and language.
One could argue that the focal point of the painting is actually the absence of a predominant religious emphasis. This was just the beginning of Europe’s movement away from religion and toward humanism.
As early as the 15th century, mankind started to become more secular, they lost much of the faith that they had in medieval times and thus began to worry less about the afterlife. With this change, the public started to worry less about the afterlife and more about the quality of the life that they were living. This painting that the Arnolfinis had painted is basically a response to this change in culture. the couple most likely hired a Van Eyck to paint this portrait of them. This is much different from how it would have been in Medieval times, where almost all paintings were of Christ or centered around Christianity so that the painter could be in favor with god.
ReplyDeleteA common theme in both Medieval and Renaissance paintings were hidden symbols. There are many different symbols in Van Eyck's painting. For example, the single candle represents the on light in their lives which is God. The mirror is the focal point of the painting, in which you see guests walking into the house from the viewers point of view. Also, from the extreme luxury of the house and the fact that the couple had themselves painted, we can conclude that they were very wealthy for the time.
In the painting, Van Eyck basically articulates the zeitgeist of the whole era. Christianity becomes sort of a background them whereas humanism becomes very popular and people began to worry about the present day much more than the afterlife.
As the Middle Ages come to a close and the Renaissance creeps on the Europeans, the conventional wisdom that has been in affect for a long time changes. Religion no longer becomes the focal point of all Europeans. During that point in history the Europeans were starting to drop religion completely and turn to the greco-roman culture. The greco-roman culture influenced the paintings, songs, and other artistic mediums.
ReplyDeleteJan Van Eyck paints this portrait to represent the departure of Latin Christian influence into secular art. In this portrait Jan Van Eyck uses symbols to entertain the observer. During that time in history, subtle symbols in painting was a popular theme that was widely used by all artists. For example, the single candle on the chandelier and the shoes that are on the ground. These symbols are not religious in any way.
The downfall of Christian influence was sparked by disbelief that the Europeans felt due to the plague and other disasters. The Europeans realized that the prayers to God was not effective in a time of need, this causes the Europeans to drop faith and bring in reason.