Author: Jake Cohen (Page 3 of 3)

In today’s class, we continued to shift our focus to fifteenth century art in northern Europe. We were introduced to the artistic design of “disguised symbolism,” which was a technique used at the time during the best artists. It was a way of disguising the meaning of symbols within artist’s paintings. The viewer would be able to spot these hidden symbols if they understood the culture of the area. We learned that the greatest artist of this era was Jan van Eyck. He was loved so much that he was even associated with the Duke of Burgundy. He was paid for being at the court of the Duke regularly and the Duke gave him “secret travels” which consisted of ambassador work and most likely “spy work” as well.

We discussed one of van Eyck’s masterpieces, “The Arnolfini Portrait” which he created in 1434. The painting depicts Arnolfini, a wealthy Italian merchant and businessman, with an unknown woman, who is speculated to be his future wife. The painting dhows Arnolfini and this woman holding hands and Arnolfini is taking an oath at the same time. This tells us that it is a marriage scene. There is a “disguised symbol” within the scene as well. There are two pairs of shoes not put aware in the house which shows that the two people are not wearing shoes, and are standing on holy ground, emphasizing the sacred moment taking place. There is also a dog in the painting which symbolizes faithfulness and loyalty. The peaches in the background represent fertility, as once you get married you hope to have children some day. There is also a sculpture of Saint Margaret praying in the background. This is the saint you pray to for giving birth safely, so it makes sense as to why it is in this marriage scene. There is also a mirror at the back of the room which allows us to see there are two other people in the room which is necessary for a marriage to take place. Two witnesses are needed, and a priest was not required at the time. To conclude, today’s class outlined the brilliance of Jan van Eyck’s artwork during fifteenth century northern European culture.

Throughout today’s class, we stressed the importance of artists progressing over time, changing previous art into better versions of themselves. Specifically, we compared two popular artists during early fourteenth Italy, Duccio and Giotto. The two Italian artists produced magnificent pieces of art, but in very different ways. For example, Duccio’s background in his image of Christ arriving in Jerusalem has a very gold background, representing pureness and godly. On the other hand, Giotto’s is blue and mysterious, creating very different visuals to the viewer. The two paintings of Christ returning to Jerusalem are different as well in their perspectives. In Duccio’s painting there is a clear perspective. The viewer can clearly see that Christ and his followers are at the forefront of the painting, and the town is in the distance, taking up the background. However, in Giotto’s painting there is no perspective, rather, everything is at the same level. Therefore, the viewer is with the painting in Giotto’s, and small details are more important in Duccio’s painting of this scene.

At the end of class, we started our section on fifteenth century art in northern Europe. During this era, artists began to reach prominence. Many were known by name, they rose to important positions in society, and were aware of their significant artistic achievements. We learned how the social structure in northern Europe was very different than in Italy at the time. There was a feudal system in place which clearly outlined the powers and decision makers of territories. This influenced the type of artwork that was displayed across this region.

In our first day of AR112, we learned about different architecture displayed throughout the Italian peninsula. We touched on different designs such as large bell towers being prevalent throughout the peninsula, as well as large squares being consistently spread out throughout the area. It’s important to note that because Italy was not unified until the 19th century, there were tons of city-states that made up the peninsula, each one having its own sense of pride and nationalism. As stated above, large bell towers were created throughout many cities in Italy. These towers created a sense of pride and safety for your hometown. If a citizen could see the tower, they felt safe and apart of their community. If they could not see the bell tower anymore, they felt more lost and unknown. This sense of attachment to community created many rivalries between towns that still exist to this day.

We also learned about the importance of Saint Francis within Italy. Francis wrote the song “The Canticle of Brother Sun” in 1224 which was significant because it was one of the first works ever written in Italian, rather than Latin. Saint Francis grew up within a wealthy family, but saw beggars throughout his hometown, and ultimately shifted from his rich lifestyle to a poor one. He joined the beggars and promoted his ideas. His followers became known as “Franciscans.” This group differs itself from monks, as they interacted with all different types of people. After Francis died in 1226, he was recognized as a saint just two years later in 1228, the quickest to ever be named a saint after their passing. I enjoyed learning about the importance of Saint Francis and the significance of different architecture throughout the Italian peninsula in our first class.